


The Ballad of Deoxys and Mewtwo

by Ysavvryl



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Main Video Game Series)
Genre: Comedy, Family, Gen, Technology vs Magic, Video Game Mechanics, World Domination, inspired by Pinky and the Brain
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-23
Updated: 2015-12-30
Packaged: 2018-05-08 16:42:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 59,582
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5505134
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ysavvryl/pseuds/Ysavvryl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"What do you want to do tonight, Mewtwo?"</p><p>"Same thing we do every night, Deoxys: try to take over the world!"</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A Magnet for Megalomaniacs

**Author's Note:**

> I love crackfics, but I tend to find dramatic serious things in them, ha ha, like this story! The idea is crazy, take the idea and personalities in the Animaniacs' characters Pinky and the Brain. But it went a bit serious. Still, it's a fun story overall, so enjoy.

The naval base had a steady rhythm of unnoticed activity. An outsider would see the ocean quietly lapping against giant but plain buildings. An insider would see a series of docks where the greatest marine weapons and vehicles were made, enhanced, and maintained. An outsider would see empty concrete lots marked as runways. An insider would see the cover to a hive of underground tunnels where security kept constant watch on all that went on overhead.

Except this evening. Various members of security were asleep, paralyzed, or locked in closets. The cameras and sensors were off or on their lowest settings. None of the aboveground personnel had noticed.

Two individuals had noticed. The Psychic Pokemon were hiding between two rows of large crates. One looked strange, a mixture of feline, human, and something alien to either kind. Mewtwo was carefully searching for any clue about who neutralized security. The other looked stranger, like a red and green abstract work of art come to life. Deoxys looked over the sailors and workers who were visible on the docks.

He twitched his left arm, currently in its twin-whip form. " _Isn't it a good thing?_ " he asked. " _You were wondering how we would blend in._ "

" _It could work in our favor_ ," Mewtwo agreed. " _But someone else has plans for this base. We don't want to cross them without knowing our enemy_."

" _Then what should we do?_ "

" _Let's go ahead, even if this means we'll have to move quicker. I'll go acquire the target and call you when I'm ready to leave. You go on with your distraction. However, if you run into someone definitely not from this base, take caution_."

" _Okay_."

Mewtwo teleported away while Deoxys drifted along the row of crates.

* * *

 

Distraction, distraction, distraction...

Deoxys watched the dockworkers, wondering which plan he should go with. Mewtwo had let him decide what his plan was for this mission, which was exciting. He had so many ideas for what he could do to distract people. He knew lots of things that distracted himself. But what about other people?

Now that he looked at them, he wasn't sure if any of his distractions would work on this group of humans. His powers were still forming, so he couldn't read thoughts like Mewtwo could. But he could get impressions of what most others were thinking. From that, he could tell... everyone here was working, or thinking about working. They had to load the ship that had just unloaded all these wooden crates. They had to repair three other vessels that were in the giant dock buildings. They had to clear the runway once the ship was gone so some important plane could land later. And they were going to ignore any simple distraction that he made.

Deoxys sighed. He'd hoped to do something really impressive and make Mewtwo proud. It was looking to be harder than he thought. He could just make a giant mess of these crates, but would that clear the area his partner would be in? What should he do?

There was one thing that might help. Concentrating, he recalled a Magic 8-ball that was in his room back at their home base. He summoned for it and it appeared in his hands. He shook it up, then pulled it closer to his chin. " _Should I go right?_ "

He flipped the ball over. Once the liquid settled, it read, 'I don't think so.'

Nodding, he put it back in his room. " _Okay, left then_."

At the end of the left passage between the crates, there was a security officer, a sailor, and an engineer. They were also thinking of work, but it seemed to be a different kind of work. Deoxys drifted closer to listen.

"Well none of the commanders are around tonight," the officer said. "We could get away with practicing out here."

The engineer shook his head. "Sorry, but my Medicham's been sick."

"That's too bad," the sailor said. "What's wrong with him?"

"The nurse says it's a viral infection, so he's going to be down for at least two more days."

The officer crossed his arms over his chest. "That virus? Yeah, it's been spreading among the Pokemon on base. A couple of mine are sick too, so I have to keep them separate from the others. They're not happy with that, being worried about the sick ones."

"I hope he's better in time for the show. He knows the routine better than we do."

They could provide a distraction. Deoxys wasn't sure how, but his sixth sense told him that it would work. That is, if his grasp of English was good enough. He came out of hiding and approached them. "Hi, I, um, think I'm lost."

"You're an odd Pokemon," the sailor said. "How'd you get on base?"

He shrugged. In the meantime, he added psychic suggestions that he was ordinary, friendly, and not dangerous, all despite his ability to speak. "I don't know. I made a mistake teleporting, I guess."

"I'll have to escort you off-base later," the security officer said. "But not right now; they're having some issues with the gate."

"Is that why I got in here?"

"Maybe."

The sailor elbowed the officer. "Hey, you think he'll be good enough to help us practice?"

"What, this stranger?"

Deoxys tilted his head. "Help with what?"

"We need a Pokemon dancer to practice with our tribute band. Normally we'd use his Medicham, but he's sick right now."

Deoxys twirled his whip arm around, pleased with this development. "I like dancing!"

"And if you can teleport, you're probably Psychic, right? So you'll be able to learn the routine by syncing with us."

"Oh, I'm still working on my powers. But I think I can do that."

The engineer smiled and pulled something out of a box. "Great, then you'll need to put this one. It should fit."

Deoxys took the large feathered headband. "Okay."

* * *

 

Mewtwo appeared on the top of a watch tower near the main gate of the base. After scouring the base on his own, he found more and more signs of a quiet takeover. To himself, he admitted that this was an impressive strategist in action, whoever that strategist was. Because it wasn't himself who had executed the daring plan, he wouldn't say that aloud.

From several minds, he had gleamed an order to hold stations. There was some trouble at this gate and, reportedly for security reasons, everyone was to stay put. It seemed reasonable, but Mewtwo knew that it was a perfect cover for such a takeover. So he'd come up here, where he could observe the hostiles unnoticed.

The individuals inside the gatehouse were wearing the official naval security uniforms, but they were not naval security officers. They weren't part of the navy at all. The navy didn't allow for dying one's hair silver-blue. " _Team Galactic,_ " Mewtwo whispered to himself. " _So you've come out here to make a final stand, have you?_ "

The Galactic Grunts were embarrassingly easy to read. Their wills were weak, leaving their minds unguarded. Those minds weren't much better, though. Their devotion to their leader was absolute. Their thoughts were clouded by buzzwords, grandiose promises, and scientific fog. Not matter what logic was tried on them, they would die for their cause, even if they hardly understood it.

They were fools, Mewtwo thought, much like most other humans. Those who weren't fools were cruel and careless. He wasn't sure which type he hated more. The humans were why he had set his sights on global domination. He could do a thousand times better than any one of them and, once he managed to get in power, they would certainly agree.

Cyrus, though, he didn't know much about that leader. There was what the media reported, but that was a flawed source of information. Cyrus deserved some credit for developing such a powerful charisma when he reportedly did not believe in being emotional. He was a scientific genius as well, in the field of engineering and chemistry. Mewtwo didn't know enough about this opponent to fight him.

He shook his head. " _Well if you want this base, take it_ ," he muttered. " _I'm just here for one thing._ "

That one thing was a nuclear submarine currently docked on Pier 5. It was the top marine vessel in the world, if the navy's boasting were any indication. It might be, it might not be, but it was good enough for Mewtwo's intentions. While he prided himself of being a scientific genius, his talents lay more in the genetic fields. He could possibly build a submarine, but it was easier just to take one. And it would be nice if the sub had a radio, because he had 'YMCA' stuck in his head and if he could hear it or some other Village People song, that would be great.

Mewtwo blinked. The Village People? Why was he thinking about them now? It was utterly non sequitur and he hated non sequitur. Not only that, but their songs were annoying. What was going on?

* * *

 

The Pelliper was wavering on his feet. " _I, I'm all right. I can do my j-jo-achooo!_ " He sneezed himself off the post.

The Machoke with him edged away. " _Hey, don't get your germs on me, or I'll beat you into that post_."

"You sure your Pokemon is all right?" one of the humans said.

"He seemed fine earlier." The dock guard knelt down and touched the bird's beak. "Maybe I ought to turn you over to the hospital."

Pelliper huffed. " _I'm fine; we can go after wor-wa-wachoo_!"

" _Eeww_ ," Machoke replied. " _Or maybe I won't hurt a sick bird. That'll probably make me sick_."

" _Shut up, bruiser_." He sighed. " _Man, suddenly I'm in the mood for some upbeat music_."

The radio with them buzzed with a message. "Hey Jack, guess what's going on down at the docks."

"What is it this time?" a radio elsewhere on base replied. "It'd better not be some fish prank again."

"No, there's a tribute band for the Village People practicing down here, and they're really great. You should come by and see."

"Aren't we supposed to stay in position?"

"Ah, it's probably just some Bidoof that bit through the wires again. The base commander is cranky this week."

"Crankier then usual, yeah. Okay, sounds good."

"A tribute band?" one of the dock guards asked. "Well normally they suck, but for some reason, this one sounds intriguing."

"Want to go check it out?"

"Sure, why not? You two stay here; we shouldn't be gone long." The two humans left to find the band.

" _Aw man,_ " Machoke said, smacking one fist into the other. " _I want to see the tribute band too._ "

* * *

 

The guards in the watch tower said, "That would be cool to go see."

"I thought you didn't like the Village People."

"Well not really... but still, sounds fun."

Mewtwo chuckled. Only Deoxys would use a tribute band as a distraction. And his psychic powers were developing nicely if he could implant a general thought over this entire community. If Mewtwo had had his way, he would have continued working alone. And this partnership benefited Deoxys more, which Mewtwo generally didn't like. However, the chance that brought the odd Pokemon to him was looking like a better and better investment.

At any rate, he'd best move in to secure the sub. Hopefully Deoxys had bought him enough time. He teleported to the pier the submarine was at. Security here was below minimal, consisting of just two Pokemon. Strange, but he would take this chance. Mewtwo teleported down and smashed them both with a blast of Psychic.

They fell immediately, which made Mewtwo suspicious. The Machoke he could understand, but the Pelliper should have not gone down like his peer. Was this a trap? He made a sweep of the area, but found no signs of an ambush. Either Galactic had cleaned up the area before, or...

The submarine was shielded against Pokemon powers. When he teleported onto it, he sensed that he could not phase through it. It would survive the attacks of any oceanic Pokemon, although persistent opponents might take the machine down. It was a fine example of what humans could do when they put their minds to something destructive. Although he didn't like physical actions, Mewtwo climbed down the ladder of the open porthole.

Once inside, he scanned again. There was no one in here, though. Then he'd gotten really lucky... which he hated. Luck would turn on one without notice. Still, while it lasted, he would take advantage of it.

The submarine was all business in a small space. From the number of stations, it looked like it was meant to have a crew of thirty-six, operating underwater for days, perhaps weeks. The outside hull and the inner nuclear engine were both heavily shielded; everything else was lightened for efficiency. The stark metal rails, the dark grated floors, and the combative screen displays all pleased him. This would be the ideal tool for his greater plans.

It gave him a taste the thrill that he only got in combat. And worthy combat at that, not like the two weaklings who had been left for 'guards' outside. He couldn't wait to bring this vessel into battle. Well, Team Galactic was conveniently outside. Mewtwo wondered if he could find out exactly where.

But first, one problem: he didn't know how to operate a nuclear sub. That was just a small matter. After some searching, he located the captain's quarters, which held a ten volume set detailed the constructions, operations, and maintenance of this beast. Mewtwo raised his hand, drawing out the first manual by telekinesis. Then he closed his eyes and placed that hand on the book. This way, he could soak in the material much faster than ordinary reading.

* * *

 

The security officer of the tribute band looked over the crowd. "Wow... I didn't realize we were so popular."

Deoxys twirled around happily. "We must be doing great!"

"You're certainly doing a great job," the engineer said. "You and my Trance ought to be amazing together."

This saddened his mood some. "Oh, but I can't stay. I have to return sometime."

"That's too bad. But we should give him something for his effort."

"I've got something." The construction worker opened his backpack and pulled out something. "How's this?"

Laughing, Deoxys took it. "That's perfect! Thanks."

"Hey, can you do 'YMCA'?" a voice in the crowd called. Various cheers approved this choice.

"Can you stay a bit longer?"

He nodded, then had to push the Indian headdress back.. He wasn't sure how much time he had to distract everyone, but Mewtwo would call him. "I think so. Let's do it!"

* * *

 

"****," Mewwo cussed, then bumped his head standing back up too quickly, causing him to cuss again. He'd come down to check on the weaponry the sub was currently holding. There were torpedoes in all slots, which initially seemed promising. But then they turned out to be more like giant fireworks than weapons. It was frustrating to find out that his newly acquired nuclear submarine was armed with nothing more than bottle rockets and Roman candles.

Well, he had the sub, and he knew exactly how everything worked. He could make his own torpedoes and rearm the lasers and cannons. It would take time, and some materials that would be tricky to acquire, but it would be worth it in the end.

Clank, clank, clank...

Mewtwo froze, then pressed himself against the wall. It came from the control room. Some human wearing heavy armor had entered. It didn't seem like a navy personnel. The mind was shielded, so he couldn't tell... no, wait. This human radiated power that indicated a highly intelligent, strong-willed, and emotionally cold individual. The Galactic grunts that he had observed did not have enough discipline to restrict their emotions that much. Most likely, this was Cyrus.

Wanting to get in closer for a better reading, Mewtwo teleported up to the control room. The Galactic leader noticed and turned immediately. His light blue eyes were almost robotic in their calculating gaze. Everything about him seemed unnatural, from his sleek blue hair to his pale hands. Over his body, Cyrus wore an armored exoskeleton. It wasn't full protection, but it enhanced his natural strengths (or gave him strength where he had none). And it was equipped with a set of rockets, allowing him to fly.

Somewhere in that robotic exterior, Mewtwo could sense emotions trapped deep inside. So he was still human after all, just denying that part of himself. That could be a weakness as well as a strength, but that would only matter if Mewtwo spent a lot of time around this human. That was something he wasn't planning on.

"Did they leave you here as a guard?" Cyrus asked, his voice as sterile as Mewtwo expected.

"No, I'm taking this submarine," he replied firmly. "If you would smartly leave, then you won't get hurt."

His lips tightened as the human was forced to reconsider him. "Then, you must be Mewtwo."

"Yes, Cyrus. Leave."

There was a flicker of anger; he didn't like being disrespected. But his control was too tight to let go. "I'm afraid not. For you see, I've taken command of this naval base. Therefore, this submarine belongs to me now. So you should leave as you are trespassing on my property."

Mewtwo crossed his arms over his chest. Even if this thing was only armed with fireworks, he wanted it. "You can make a bomb that can evaporate an entire lake without killing a single being there. What would you want a nuclear submarine for?"

He took a step back, but not out of being intimidated. He was bracing himself. "You can blow things up with just your mind, if I hear things properly. What would you want a nuclear submarine for?"

"Point taken. Still," he put psychic suggestions for obedience in his voice, "this is mine and you will leave."

For a second, Mewtwo thought he had Cyrus. But his highly logical mind shut down the outside suggestions unconsciously. "I could just take you for my own."

"You won't!" Mewtwo snapped, sending a psychic blast at him. The human was unharmed, but his robotic exoskeleton shuddered and accidentally fired a small device at the wall.

Cyrus glanced at it, then shot up the porthole with his rockets.

One should never question an action like that, Mewtwo thought as he teleported to directly under the porthole, then teleported up into the air. It was proved when a blast rattled the entire sub. The air above the porthole quivered as the blast wave shot through it as the only escape from the armored vehicle. Something about the bomb messed up the controls as well, as the submarine fired off all of its torpedoes at once. Cryus moved backwards in the air, but Mewtwo didn't as a dazzling shower of lights and explosions filled the night sky.

"Now you've wrecked my submarine," Cryus said coolly, as if talking about a worthless toy instead of a multimillion dollar weapon of destruction.

"I did?" Mewtwo shouted back in indignation. Using his anger, he picked up the submarine with telekinesis. Once he had a good grip on it, he flipped himself around, launching it over his head and at Cyrus. The human was knocked down, but the submarine bounced off the ground and crashed into a cluster of buildings seventy-five yards away.

The exoskeleton was badly wrecked, but it had done its job in protecting Cyrus. He got up, apparently calm. "You're just a Pokemon, after all. You can't understand the universe as we humans can."

Mewtwo growled and began charging his power with Calm Mind. A calmness fueled by anger could be very strong.

"Cyrus."

He looked over into the shadows. Somebody was standing there, obscured save for a proud silhouette. "Who...?" he started.

"I thought you should know," the stranger said, "that Mewtwo has no qualms about killing anyone."

Mewtwo fired off Thunder, but Cyrus wisely used the last of his rockets' power to get out of the way. Annoyed, he shouted at the shadows. "Why are you here, Giovanni?"

"I had an idea that someone would be here," Giovanni replied. "Never mistake Mewtwo for an ordinary Pokemon, Cyrus. And you owe me money."

"You came onto a naval base on a hunch just to collect a debt?" Cyrus asked.

"He's a bastard like that," Mewtwo said.

Then Giovanni vanished, appearing next to the Galactic leader. Once he was in the warehouse's security light, a silver-colored handgun came into view. His spotless black suit contrasted sharply to Cyrus' battered robotic exoskeleton. It was like him to show up so impeccably dressed at any occasion, with neat black hair that disguised his true age, all over a poise of total confidence that intimidated almost everyone. And for some reason, all of Mewtwo's mind reading powers stopped dead when directed at Giovanni.

The former Rocket leader handled his handgun like anything else, as pure business. "We will discuss this matter. However, I'm afraid that with a nuclear sub having been thrown into the dock offices, your hold on this place won't last much longer. You may wish to call your subordinates back."

To Mewtwo's annoyance, Giovanni got a reaction out of Cyrus with this firm order. He pulled out his radio. "Commanders, report."

It took a moment, but a man responded. "Uh, sir, can this wait?"

"What are you doing?" Cryus said icily.

"Well there's this really great Village People tribute band... they've even got a Pokemon that can speak English in the group and it's really amazing to see it dance. And they have fireworks!"

"Are you talking about a Jynx?"

"No sir. I, uh, I'm not sure what it is. It's not like anything I've seen."

That caused both of the humans to pause and consider. "Drat," Mewtwo muttered, then teleported to a deserted part of the docks to call Deoxys.

It took a minute, but Deoxys appeared. " _Hi Mewtwo. Um, where's the sub?_ "

" _I had some unexpected trouble_ ," he admitted. " _We'll have to abandon the mission. But good work on your end. I heard about it._ "

He was pleased with the compliment. " _Yeah, it was really awesome! I would've sung in the group too, but I didn't know the songs that well. And they gave me a great present for doing a great job_."

" _A great...?_ " he checked Deoxys' thoughts. " _Wait, they actually gave you...?_ "

" _Pixy Stix!_ " he cheered, pulling out a two dollar bag of the colorful paper straws.

" _Right, just what you need: flavored sugar._ "

" _I'll share,_ " he said, offering the opened bag. " _Oh, but not the purple Razz berry ones. Those are my favorite._ "

Mewtwo took a yellow one. " _Are these Pinap or Nomel?_ "

" _Uh,_ " he checked the bag. " _I think they're either._ "

" _It doesn't really matter. Let's go home. We have to plan for tomorrow night._ "

" _Why Mewtwo? What're we doing tomorrow night?_ "

" _The same thing we do every night, Deoxys: try to take over the world!_ "

" _Okay_." Deoxys took hold of Mewtwo's arm so the older one could teleport them both.

* * *

 

"You gave up your posts to see a Village People tribute band?" Cyrus asked. He was clearly in disapproval, although no signs of anger were present.

The man tried not to fidget under his leader's gaze. "But they were really good."

Giovanni ignored this. He'd been through times like it himself. Instead, he watched the space where Mewtwo had been. "You've been improving yourself," he mused quietly. "And yet, that was a strange behavior from you, to just leave two enemies like that. Something's changed."

How could he use that change to his advantage?


	2. The Laboratory of the Giant Laser

Whistling merrily, Deoxys drew with chalk on the hallway walls. The dark stone that their castle was built out of was perfect for showing off brightly colored chalk marks. He drew a scene of boats on the ocean, thinking about their mission a few days ago. He included several periscopes of submerged submarines as well as a flock of Wingulls flying overhead.

Pausing a moment, he looked over his mosaic. It stretched from one stairwell to the next, all the way down the hall. It had started with a few flowers and grew into this. He was almost out of chalk. But it was strange. The whole time he had drawing, he had not been interrupted.

Had he seen Mewtwo today? Deoxys thought over his morning and couldn't remember running into him. Sometimes he locked himself in a room for hours upon hours of study or experiments. But he usually saw his elder at least once.

Deoxys searched and found a weak signal from near their bedrooms. It seemed like him, but that weak? He wondered what Mewtwo was doing. Teleporting up to that level, he went to find out.

Mewtwo was in his personal library. The walls were covered in shelves that were packed with all sorts of large and difficult books. There was a grand picture window covered by drapes, which were dark red with gold trim. The floor had a geometrically patterned area rug, also dark red with gold. He claimed that the decor had been here since he took over, but Deoxys felt that he liked it.

There was a fire in the fireplace. Mewtwo was curled up in an armchair close to the fire, with a yellow blanket covering him. Although he didn't stir as Deoxys approached, he had to have noticed.

" _Mewtwo?_ " Deoxys stopped in front of him. " _Are you cold? It doesn't seem bad in here._ "

" _You're not as sensitive to temperature as most_ ," he replied, then sneezed. " _I'm sick._ "

" _How'd you get sick?_ "

" _I picked up a virus on that naval base. That accounts for why the Pokemon I encountered seemed like such weaklings_."

" _Oh. Am I going to get sick?_ " The thought worried him, as he'd never been sick before. He'd seen sick people on TV though, and they seemed in an awful state, like Mewtwo now.

This made him laugh, then cough. " _No, no, you're immune. Heck, what am I saying? It's the same thing you were._ "

" _I see. Well I'd try talking to it, but I know viruses don't think much, so it might not understand. Can I do something to help?_ "

" _Get me some more water; my mind isn't steady enough for telekinesis. And if you're up to it, make some soup_."

" _Sure thing._ " He picked up the glass on the table and went to fill it with water.

Mewtwo nodded when he brought it back. " _Remember to read the can first_."

Deoxys laughed, even if it did embarrass him. " _Yeah, I will_."

The first time he had tried making soup, he thought he had to heat up the soup in the can. Without even opening it, he placed a can on a hotplate that Mewtwo used in his experiments. After fifteen minutes, the can burst with hot steam and condensed soup. It had been very messy and the soup wasn't good either. This time, he read the instructions on the chicken noodle soup and made it properly.

Mewtwo didn't say anything when he got the mug of hot soup, but Deoxys knew that he appreciated it. He was like that, not revealing his feelings much. Deoxys waited for a little while quietly, then asked, " _So what do you want to do?_ "

He flicked his tail in response. " _Do? Nothing. I'm not much good while my body is fighting off this infection_."

It was something like he was. " _Sorry._ "

" _There's nothing for you to apologize for. I was just going to sleep, but I can't sleep with this chill, or with how my body aches. Then I was going to read, but I can't concentrate._ "

" _You're bored, huh?_ "

" _Miserably bored._ "

Deoxys twirled and untwirled his whip arms, then flicked them as an idea came. " _Hey, can you tell me about when you met me? Cause I don't remember, but you said stuff happened before I met you._ "

" _Yes, the experiment had unexpected complications. Especially for you._ " He closed his eyes for a moment, then looked into the fire. " _So you want to hear stories?_ "

" _I can help tell them!_ " he said brightly. Then he rethought it. " _Oh, when it gets to a part that I know_."

" _Hmm. I suppose I can manage that. It's just remembering_."

There was a minute of just the fire crackling as Mewtwo thought. Deoxys tilted his head. " _So what happened?_ "

Mewtwo looked back at him. His blue eyes were a bit hazy, making it difficult to get a hint of what he was thinking. " _You are such a child._ "

" _Oh, um... do you mean that in a good way, or bad?_ "

" _In a good way, I suppose._ " He rested his chin on his hand. " _Well it started when I was reading scientific blogs online. Checking up on how the humans were progressing, you see. I read one for a worldwide project headed by Professor Rowan to study how GTS evolutions worked._ "

" _How what worked?_ "

Pausing, he switched over to English, as he usually did if an explanation required a lot of science. "GTS stands for the Global Trading System, a digitalized system for registering traded Pokemon, then transporting them all over the world. It was always known that some Pokemon could possibly evolve when they were traded between Trainers, but it was only a possibility. GTS transformed this phenomena and I'm one of the scientists interested in knowing why. At Veldime University, a group was planning to test part of the process and I went to witness."

For himself, Deoxys was always eager for a chance to practice his second language. "Did they invite you?"

"No, I snuck in. The end result of the experiment, though, surprised us all."

* * *

 

The footsteps of three people echoed through the concrete corridor. Various metal pipes and electrical lines stretched along the perfectly straight test center. Although it didn't look like much, this mile long structure was part of one of the top research facilities in the world.

"We know the genes of a Pokemon are incredibly flexible," one of the scientists said. "One Pokemon can develop into a variety of forms when exposed to environmental stimuli and stresses."

"Heck, Eevee can evolve at least seven different ways," another added. "And a recent report says that one type, Rotom, can alter its bodily form and functions depending on the kind of device it's attached to."

"Rotom is also a ghost," the third said. "Ghosts are just plain weird as it is."

They stopped by a door; the first scientist searched his pocket for a set of keys. "But what we're interested in today is the energy emitted by the Global Trading System. It's an established fact that some Pokemon can evolve when they are traded between Trainers. However, it was previously unpredictable if, say a Haunter, would evolve or not."

"But once GTS went online, these trade evolutions became more common. Using an ID swap on a Pokeball used to only net a trade evolution one out of four times. Now it's upwards of seven out of eight times, or even higher."

"There we go," the first scientist mumbled as he pulled out the key ring. "Trade evolutions have also become more widespread. More and more Pokemon are gaining additional forms through trades. And trades with items. It used to be that you could only find Steelix in areas with high iron deposits. But now you can swap an Onix with an iron barbell and get a Steelix that way."

"You don't even have to completely trade it over sometimes," the second scientist added as they entered the control room. "There's reports of technical malfunctions resulting in aborted trades where the original Trainer will receive an evolved Pokemon."

"Of course, nobody really wants to 'fix' the problem when it produces such powerful Pokemon. But GTS has a lot of other hassles and kinks that need to be smoothed out. We're looking to discover what it is about the system that causes these trade evolutions."

The third scientist, just an intern, looked over the control room. It was mostly electronics set in protective high-grade plastics, so that the testers were not in danger from the intense energy levels the lab produced. The array of monitors, switches, and buttons would be confusing to an outsider, as well as not particularly 'cool' looking. "I thought we were just here to fire off the giant laser."

The other two laughed. "Well that too," the second one admitted. "But there has to be an official reason."

"Besides, if this comes up with something big, we're definitely getting a better grant next year."

" _Typical,_ " a quiet voice muttered in the Pokemon language. " _Playing with mock weapons, caring about money, not thinking about the Pokemon that could be negatively affected by your research and actions. Humans are so predictable._ "

Mewtwo wasn't even in the laser's hall or the control room. He was several hundred feet above them in an underground storage room. Through the skill of scrying with his mind's eye, he was able to watch and listen to the scientists below as if he were really there with them. He was also interested in the subject they were studying. GTS evolutions hinted something about a Pokemon's DNA structure, but what? He might be the only Pokemon in the world interested in the nitty-gritty details of biology and genes, but he was a world expert on the subject.

And they were firing a giant laser, after all. It would be a pity to miss that.

The three scientists were at the control panels, setting up their experiment. "We do have people crunching numbers and analyzing real-time trades to find patterns of evolution and signs of potential new lines. Our end is to test various aspects of the trading process to see if any one part is performing the evolutions or if it's the whole system. So of course, we've got the laser to test."

"This part of the system scrambles the Pokeball information for teleportation, then reassembles it at the end location with the ID number of the new Trainer branded to the electrical tag."

"What frequency and range does GTS use?" the intern asked.

"That's part of our problem," the first one replied. "They say it deviates by only a tenth."

"A tenth? But that's a huge range."

"I know, so I ran random tests on five GTS stations and got a common bandwidth. We'll start from there. Here's the numbers." He passed along a notebook.

They began tuning the system for firing. "So why are we firing at a meteorite instead of a Pokeball?"

"We don't want to use a Pokemon for this stage of testing, obviously. But we've got the next best thing: Dedrias Desinathine Runaria."

"A virus?"

"More specifically, an airborne virus capable of surviving in outer space. We're not sure where DDR originated, but it shows up frequently with falling stars and infects Pokemon. DDR comes close to a Pokemon's genetic structure, but lacks the full autonomous nature and processes of life. If any alterations occur to this virus, we can be almost certain that similar alterations would happen in a Pokemon."

"Ah, and DDR is fairly well known. But you know, it always struck me as odd that we keep finding DDR strains on meteorites. Where are they coming from? If they're well documented as occurring on Earth, then what are they doing in space?"

"You know how Clefairies come from the moon?"

"Oh, right."

"What about Clefairies?" the second scientist asked.

"They have some way of getting between the Earth and the Moon. It's been proven now, but we don't know how they manage it. And if a Clefairy can manage travel in outer space, then certainly other Pokemon and a simple virus can do that same."

"Right. I've got my part set up."

"And I've got the numbers in. How's the laser?"

"All systems are ready. No problems apparent. You ready to fire?"

The first scientist smiled. "I've been waiting for this all day. Let's go."

" _Finally_ ," Mewtwo grumbled. " _Chatterboxes._ "

At one end of the hall, the machinery began humming. Power accumulated and went into the split second process of forming a giant laser beam. At the other end of the hall, a lone meteorite sat still.

* * *

 

The life of a virus is not that interesting. For as much trouble as these fragments of genetic data cause, they are really only concerned about a few things.

Find energy source.

Replicate.

Find energy source.

Replicate.

And concerned is a rather strong term to use when it comes to a virus.

Dedrias Disinathine Runaria had been given a few cells from a Ditto to infest, but the cells were weak and separate. The virus had settled into a hibernation state to wait until a living cell became available. Although it had some energy to take off into the air, it would be at the whims of the wind to take it to a host. The extremely simple judgment of DDR had decided on hibernation.

DDR was not concerned about living an interesting life. It was just 'concerned' with existing. But in an instant, its life was about to become very interesting. It was about to enter the wild world of being a complex organism.

* * *

 

A riveting boom filled the control room. It sounded like a concrete truck filled with high explosives had been blown to smithereens.

"We don't need the added sound effects," the first scientist said.

The intern grinned sheepishly, putting his MP3 player up. "Well, that is the most disappointing part of firing the big laser, the fact that all it does is a long warm-up hum, then a slight buzz."

"Wait a sec," the second scientist said. "Something happened."

" _No kidding_ ," Mewtwo said in the room far above them.

He could tell some of what had happened. The high energy laser had struck the virus and its host Ditto cells at full force in the scrambling stage. When it went into the reassembling stage, the accident had happened. The laser had fused the virus, cells, meteorite, and some of the tunnel's protective shielding together permanently. Then, in something he couldn't yet explain, the energy of the event supercharged the natural growth cycle of the Ditto. In less than a second, it had grown to a fully grown five foot tall Pokemon.

But this was no Ditto that lay in shock on the floor of the laser testing hall. The DDR virus had formed into something different, something almost like an abstract painting of a human come to life. Certainly, it had some traits of a Ditto; the new Pokemon was genetically unstable, shifting forms repeatedly. But it was more like a distant cousin.

Mewtwo shook his head. Even though he wasn't expecting the virus to morph into a full-fledged Pokemon, he expected it to do some fusing. His theory was that it would turn into a different disease, perhaps even a devastating Pokemon plague. " _All of your scientists are fools._ "

Well, he'd seen what he'd come to see. That was it. He got up to leave, but on a whim, checked back on the scientists and the new Pokemon.

"Then it is this part of the process," the second scientist said, excited. "I wasn't expecting the potential for change to be this great, though."

"Now we just need to find out why one Pokemon evolves and another doesn't, and we could have amazing new evolutions to show the world."

"But what is that one down there?" the intern asked. "Is it a parasite? It is a mutated virus, after all."

"I've noticed its form hasn't settled yet. But that is promising. It could become popular within the Leagues, if it's got some power to draw on."

"Scanners show that it's only level 1, so it's hard to say now what its potential is."

"We should study it for a while. I mean, it could be anything."

"It's most likely close to a Ditto; that's what the virus was last given to feed on."

" _Only level 1_ ," Mewtwo whispered to himself.

...

He was never quite sure what he would wake up as. This morning, it was a particularly unpleasant slug form. Like a Slugma minus the molten lava, he was barely holding himself together with his Psychic powers.

"It's only level one, sir. We can't tell what exactly it can do at this point."

A voice he was growing to hate spoke up. "We know enough to know that this version is useless. Restructure the gene sequence."

"It seems anxious about this, sir."

"It's changing too much to remember this. We'll get the perfect Pokemon."

...

Except that he could remember that. He didn't like remembering that and sometimes wished that they had been right. But he had made them all pay for his suffering in the end. " _But that was my problem, and this is yours,_ " he muttered.

Still, not many people realized what it was like to be a Slugma without the molten lava, barely keeping together.

" _I'll probably regret this,_ " he said, but then teleported down to the hallway of the giant laser. The scientists were some distance away still. He looked down at the new Pokemon.

DDR was coming out of its hibernation state, but the process was far more complicated than before. Its body trembled as a vast array of new systems began feeding foreign information into its new mind. To the untrained eye, it seemed to be having nightmares. Mewtwo could tell that it couldn't yet comprehend things well enough to have nightmares. It was going to need time to get used to its new life.

A hum of a small vehicle announced the arrival of the three scientists. Mewtwo turned to them for study. Granted, they weren't funded by a mafia like the ones who had worked on him had been. But they were careless in the way scientists could be. They relied on public funding for their work, so if someone offered a large sum of money in exchange for this DDR mutant, they would take it with little thought about its well-being.

However, it didn't matter what they would do, because they wouldn't get a chance to do it. Mewtwo summoned a random anvil and dropped it on their cart, then teleported back to his home base with DDR. He had a laboratory of his own. It was one of the top facilities in the world, even if no one knew about it.

After placing it in a development vat so that it had less of a chance to hurt itself, he began his own study.

* * *

 

Mewtwo had always worked alone. It made things simpler. He knew he could trust himself, so he never had to worry about being betrayed. He knew he could keep a secret, so he never had to worry about information leaks. And he knew that he could pull off any plan he designed.

Well, he could pull off any plan if there weren't any random disturbances to the mission. Like a kitchen fire alerting authorities to pay attention to the location he was at. Or an Ursaring with fleas on a berserk rampage to get rid of them. Or a sudden rain of Poliwags, or any number of random events that could happen on any random day. Randomness was the bane of Mewtwo's existence.

There were some problems to working alone. For one, he was the only one to do everything. Attaining the power to rule the world was a dangerous proposal. Many people rejected his proposal on the sole reason of remaining 'free'. Thus, he had to come up with multi-layered and multi-stepped plots to achieve his lofty goal. Anything that required multiple steps or layers required a lot of prep work, which he had to do alone.

Now he had another Pokemon in his base of operations. He might be able to pass off some physical chores onto this one; it certainly looked strong enough for physical labor. Maybe. Mewtwo picked up one of the subject's limbs and examined it again. It was technically an arm, but it had split into two appendages that were more like whips than arms. He curled one whip around his fingers; the subject showed no response to this, still working on deciphering itself.

He glanced at his digital recorder and mentally pressed the 'record' button. "DDR appears to have no bone structures. Indeed, I cannot find many specialized systems within its body, not even blood. It seems capable of hardening its 'flesh', so to speak, to form structures like a skeleton, either exo- or endo- depending on form. This matches the known capabilities of Ditto, which can form itself into Steel or Rock type Pokemon, but lacking their defenses." Then he turned the recorder off.

How practical would these twin-whip appendages be? They appeared flexible, but durable. It was difficult to tell with the subject still unconscious. And yet...

...

He was strapped to a chair, with some kind of helmet trying to attach itself to his head. The last time he had seen something like this, he had been subjected to total darkness and strange noises of varying intensities. He squirmed as much as he could to keep this one from latching on. When he got a free shot, he mentally took a clipboard from the scientist's hands and smashed it into the man's face.

"Aw ****," the scientists grumbled. "That thing gave me a bloody nose."

"Would you tranquilize it before we have to send someone else to the nurse's station?"

The one who had been asked hesitated, then replied, "Do we have a tranquilizer gun around?"

Since he couldn't speak their language yet, Mewtwo snarled.

...

And yet Mewtwo wanted to finish as many of these observations and tests as he could while the DDR mutant was unconscious.

He moved away from the table and went to his workstation. Checking several screens against each other, he turned the digital recorder back on. "One system that has specialized, thankfully, is the digestive system. Viruses absorb energy from their source cell, which hints that it might acquire health draining skills later on. However, the development of a digestive track means that he can eat like a normal Pokemon. Thus I need to decipher what it can and cannot eat before it is awake."

He checked several screens showing an interior scan of the new Pokemon's body. As he'd noted earlier, this Pokemon took a lot of physical structures from the Ditto line. That included the digestive system.

"The tooth structure is non-existent and the jaw, while barely visible when shut, is capable of unhinging. This conforms to the Ditto's habit of swallowing food whole and indeed, the rest of its digestive structure is formed for that. From the chemical composition of the stomach fluids, I am certain it is an omnivore, capable of digesting plant and animal material. It is..."

He looked up and partially closed his eyes, an old habit he had while recalling something he had read. In particular, he was scanning over multiple books on Pokemon care and habits for a Ditto's feeding patterns.

"It is recommended to owners of Ditto to keep their diet varied. Plant material is the primary source of diet, such as berries, fruits, vegetables, and weaker leaves. Meat should be allowed for necessary nutrients, but limited to restrain gastrointestinal problems. Dairy products are fine, if also limited. However, anything crunchy or of a hard crystalline structure is to be avoided. It is noted that most Dittos do like some hard candies that would dissolve in the mouth, but this should be given as an occasional treat only." He turned the recorder off.

So now he had another Pokemon to feed. Given that it had evolved from a parasitic fragment of DNA, he probably had to take care of and teach it as well. All of that would cut into the time he needed for his world domination plans. And this one wouldn't be a reliable subordinate until it matured. Goodness knows how long that would take.

Why should he even bother? He did fine working alone (save for random acts of stupidity). There was no reason to put all that effort into gaining a subordinate of undetermined ability. And his study of Pokemon evolutions was only a curiosity, not a vital part of his plans. This study was in the name of science and that was it.

Was that it?

...

"I don't believe this project is worth continuing," the lead scientist said. "Mewtwo is getting dangerous, and he seems to be more intelligent than your group realizes. Everyone's been out with some injury in the past month, myself included."

"This study is in the name of science," Giovanni replied.

Inside his containment field, Mewtwo's anger flared. That was a blatant lie. This man wanted power and control. He wanted to control Mewtwo's power.

Using his psychic powers to confuse and hypnotize those who worked on him, the young Pokemon had learned to speak the human language. But he didn't let anyone realize it yet. Once he solved the puzzle of breaking this field, they would learn his full wrath.

"Someone might get killed," the lead scientist stated. He realized that the argument wasn't likely to work, but he was already afraid.

"You would give up the pursuit of knowledge so quickly?" Giovanni pulled a pen out of his pocket and reached for a notebook. "I could have someone speak to you about reassignment."

For now, the scientist's fear of Giovanni was greater. "I just wanted to relay some of our concerns to you. If we could get more insurance..."

He was hoping to squeeze out a bit more money before he dropped the project and ran. Mewtwo growled softly.

...

Mewtwo clenched his fist. That was what he had saved DDR from. If he dropped this project now, it could be snatched up by someone more careless. And he didn't have to keep it around for long. Just long enough to teach it to defend itself and keep hidden from humans.

Then he would have to care for it. It might help if it had a proper name. Dedrias Desinathine Runaria might be its scientific name, provided he tacked on a variant, but it would be awkward to address a fellow Pokemon like that. Mewtwo tapped his finger on the desk. He'd probably write a scientific paper on this mutant, if only for his own use. Then he'd have to have a species name. He considered what the former virus was and how it had come to be a full-fledged Pokemon.

He turned the tape recorder back on. "I believe that I will name him Deoxys."

* * *

 

(From a voice-recording of Mewtwo's observations)

The subject Deoxys has settled into a predictable brain activity pattern that has synced up with his bodily functions. He should be able to awaken in the next day or two. In relative terms, everything is coming up normal and functional.

It does pose an intriguing quandary. According to VU's records, the virus was given the specialized cells that allow a Ditto to morph into any Pokemon. Despite having no brain cells available, Deoxys has formed a brain that indicates a high level of intelligence for a Pokemon. He won't come up to my level, but he should be slightly above average when tested as a human. Which, obviously, is in the upper range of Pokemon.

With this high potential, he has some instinctual behavior patterns preset. Most of these follow the patterns apparent in his parent line of the Ditto. Despite that, he lacks the full range of Transform that Ditto is capable of. He appears to have four different forms he can shift between. With his current instability, he is changing between them randomly. And with that lack, he has a few instinctual patterns that do not follow the Ditto line. Instead, these patterns follow the typical Psychic template. From this, we can safely assume that he is a Psychic type; I'm fairly certain it's monotype.

So with no brain cells to fuse with, Deoxys has formed an advanced mind of a type different than that of which the virus fused with. This adds more weight to the theory that all Pokemon come from the same genetic source and, under extreme circumstances like being hit by a giant laser, any Pokemon has the potential to shift to another kind or type. Unfortunately, the single source does seem to be that pest Mew. All data points to Mew and only Mew.

I bet that she'll still be a royal pain next time I see her.

There is still the problem the VU scientists were tackling about GTS traded Pokemon. If all it takes is a particular bandwidth of laser energy to cause freak evolutions, why is it only some Pokemon that evolve this way and not others? I would expect some deaths to occur within the trading process if it was simply random, as sudden shifts of genetic structure could be too drastic for the Pokemon to handle. Or even a GTS cancer outbreak if the trading process is that rough. It might simply be that there hasn't been enough time for such cancers to appear. But what records I've reviewed show that the evolved and unevolved Pokemon that are traded are healthy. Maybe unhappy about being traded, but healthy.

I will have to continue observing their progress, along with that of Deoxys.

...

Extra:

"That's one small step for man, one giant leap for..."

"Clefairy!"


	3. 20+ Questions

In the vast Horizon Ocean, there are many small islands scattered around the tropical regions. One was Crest Island, an extinct volcano with sheer cliffs and a lavish jungle. On the highest plateau sat a grand and sprawling castle. It was made of local stones, dark and rough, which made the castle look as if it had always been there. Remote and inaccessible, yet with its own power supply and means to spy on the outside world: this was a place that any supervillain would love to inhabit.

This was the secret laboratory of Mewtwo.

A tropical bird sang his song, sounding remarkably like a cell phone with a Macarena ringtone. The jungle trees rustled outside of the window that the transformed virus lay by. The sun was shining brilliantly on the warm day; the gentle breeze smelled like vanilla vines and the vast ocean. This was what he was aware of when he first woke up.

One of the things he was missing was a proper set of eyes. What he had instead was a band of skin that was sensitive to light and color. Looking through this, he saw a blank empty room of dark gray stones inside and the brilliant blue sky outside. When he sat up, he could also see a wave of green leaves cascading down the old volcano, with the dark blue ocean beyond. And there was another Pokemon in the room.

" _You're awake_ ," the other said. " _Good_."

He turned towards him. While he didn't have proper eyes, his ears still directed him to 'look' at other people when speaking. " _Mother?_ "

" _I am not your mother,_ " he said pointedly. " _But I can understand your mistake, as you are most likely imprinting information as you are so young_."

" _What?_ "

" _Never mind. You don't have parents in the sense that other Pokemon do, as a graft between the cells of a Ditto and that of a Dedrias Disinathine Runaria virus_."

" _That sounds complicated._ "

" _I will call you Deoxys for now. Does that name suit you?_ "

" _Deoxys. I think so. What's your name, mother?_ "

He crossed his arms over his chest. " _I'm not your mother. I am Mewtwo. I am the greatest Psychic in the world, as well as the most intelligent._ "

" _Wow_."

" _Now, come with me. I'd like to run some tests on you when alert_." He teleported into the hallway beyond the door.

Deoxys got up and discovered that he could hover through the air. Uncertain of how Mewtwo had spontaneously moved from one spot to another, he floated his way into the hall. Mewtwo then teleported again, further down the hall. He chased after him, never quite making it to where he was. Then he turned a corner and bumped into a dusty cabinet. The dust made him sneeze so hard that his body shifted shapes, becoming more compact, yet lighter.

This time when he chased after Mewtwo, he went so fast that he nearly crashed into him. " _Oh, hey, look, now I'm really fast, and,_ " his nose tickled and he sneezed again. His body abruptly became thicker and more solid. " _Ooo, now I'm not so fast_."

" _Can you change back to the other form and stay that way?_ "

" _Um, I'm not sure how to_."

"Still unstable," Mewtwo muttered. " _Come on, not much further_." He teleported.

Deoxys came after him as fast as he could manage. _"Hey, what'd you do there? You spoke different._ "

" _I was speaking the human language._ "

" _Human?_ "

" _They're... not like us. Here we are._ "

They had come to another room with a large window, this time facing out over the cliffs onto the ocean below. There were several odd machines, with levers and pulleys, discs and wheels. Many of them looked dusty. " _What is this?_ "

" _Fitness equipment. It was here when I took over and I've only used it to train my telekinesis. You should be more capable of using it and it's a good way to measure your strength. Try using one of them_."

" _Okay_." He picked one machine that had a large pulley attached to a stack of weights. Hooking his arms around the bar, he pulled it down and lifted the weights. " _It's pretty easy._ "

 _"I predicted this was one of your more physical forms. Try again_."

" _Okay_." But the weights had stirred up more dust, making him sneeze and shift form again. This one gave him two whip like appendages replacing one arm, but the other now had a hand with fingers. He put that on the bar and twisted the other to secure it. He pulled, but the weights wouldn't budge. His thinner arms began to hurt. " _Did you do something with it? Cause it's impossibly heavy now_."

"Hmm." He closed his eyes and tapped his cheek. " _So your stats can vary by a wide range with your different forms_."

Deoxys kept trying to lift the weights until his nose tickled again. When he shifted, the bar came crashing down, jerking the weights into the machinery violently enough to turn the weight machine into a pile of broken metal and plastic.

He jumped back. " _I, I didn't mean to destroy it! It just happened._ "

" _There's other machines to work with._ "

Through one mishap or another, the only fitness machine to survive that day was a stationary bike.

* * *

 

(From Mewtwo's recordings)

Deoxys have four different forms, each emphasizing a different strength.

The first I call his Normal form. It is what he awakened as and naturally shifts to in periods of stability. It leans towards stronger offenses than defenses.

The second I call his Attack form. It is very strong, enabling him to physically lift more weight than the gym equipment could handle. It appears to make him weaker elsewhere, which is how the rest of his forms run. There is the Defense form, which increases his endurance, and the Speed form, which allows him to move quickly.

He can barely manage to make something quiver by telekinesis unless he is in Normal or Attack form, which allows him to crush things mentally. He hasn't yet figured out how to lift. Normal form also increases his telepathic sensitivity. So far, he can't do much in that way, but as he develops, I will have to take caution to defend against him in that way.

He has a problem of developing whip-like appendages instead of one arm. His Normal form has one hand on an arm, Attack has both arms as twin-whips, Defense has two sturdy arms but no hands, and Speed has a single whip for each arm. Once he is able to manage telekinesis and teleporting in all forms, this shouldn't be a problem, but for now it is a handicap.

His legs also change with form, in Speed's case disappearing almost entirely. But that is no problem, since he has a natural anti-gravity psychic power that allows him to hover and fly in a limited fashion.

What is more of a problem is his mind. I estimated that he would be in the high range of Pokemon, comparable with humans. His behaviors and questions, though, indicate something on level with a four year old human. He asks questions on everything, but doesn't stay on one subject for long. He doesn't think on much more than the present and himself, having a limited capacity to see things as other do. He may outgrow this. However, since he is unlike either of his genetic donors, it is difficult to tell when and even if he will mature mentally.

If this is his full maturity, that could turn into an annoyance.

* * *

 

Deoxys was exploring rooms in the castle. He stopped by a watercolor painting of a sailboat on a lake. " _Mewtwo, what's this?_ "

_"A painting of a sailboat on a lake."_

_"Where's the lake?"_

_"I'm not sure."_

_"Why is it here?"_

_"It was there when I got here and I haven't moved it."_

_"Why not?"_

_"It's not in the way."_

_"Who made this?"_

_"I don't know... look, I'm busy with this. Could you go somewhere and find something else to occupy yourself with?"_

Deoxys floated over to the table Mewtwo was working at. " _What are you doing?_ "

He turned from the computer. " _Trying to find a way to blackmail the leader of the Sinnoh League."_

_"Why?"_

_"He has the secret to a special artifact connected to Giratina, and if I can get a hold of that artifact, I can use that to further my plans."_

_"Plans for what?"_

_"I'm going to take over the world."_

_"Why?"_

_"Because it's currently ruled by those idiotic and thoughtless humans. I can do a much better job than they can. And didn't I ask you to go do something else?"_

_"I guess. What should I do?"_

_"I don't care so long as you keep out of my hair."_

Deoxys tilted his head. " _Do you have hair?_ "

Mewtwo waved him off. " _Just go._ "

" _Okay mother_."

As he left the room, he heard, " _I am not your mother._ "

Despite there being many rooms, most of them were dreary and dusty. Mewtwo only took care of the few rooms he used. Whoever had been here last had left a number of things behind. Besides the fitness equipment, there were eight fully decorated bedrooms, a well-equipped kitchen, several computers, and a large flat screen TV. Deoxys went to the TV room and pressed the buttons.

Blaring electric guitars screamed out of the speakers. "And now for the biggest heavy metal concert of the year!" an announcer yelled. "Heeeeere's the Wailing Electrodes!"

 _"Ack!_ " Deoxys squealed, hitting the channel search quickly. " _That was scary._ "

"Today, on Dreaming at the Daycare," another announcer started to speak on a soap opera when the channel shifted again.

"So what contenders are up for the Johto Championship this weekend, Bob?"

"What we have here today is simply the most amazing utensil you have never seen, the…"

"Hi, it's Glitter Glameow, the super sweet pop star! Today, I'm…"

"Your Pokemon will look their prettiest if you take them to Sweetie's Beauty Parlor today!"

"Hey kids, it's time to play with Plusle and Minun at the Super Secret Base!"

"Buy Holly's Toothpaste! Buy Holly's Toothpaste!"

" _Hang on_." Deoxys pressed several more buttons until he got it back on the colorful Plusle and Minun show. " _This looks interesting_."

The screen now showed a pair of bright yellow rodent Pokemon hopping gleefully in a grassy room. One had red tips with a cross on them, and the other had blue tips with a single line on them. "Hi everybody!" the red one said. "It's Plusle!"

"And Minun," the blue one added.

"And we're in.."

"Our Super Secret Base!" they cheered together.

" _Huh?_ " Deoxys tilted his head at the oddity. Their body language and mental signals were clearly understandable as all Pokemon knew each other, but on top of that, they somehow managed to say the exact same things in the human language. Mewtwo could speak both ways, but only ever spoke one at a time.

"We've got our special friend here today, Nancy the Shuppet."

"Nancy was once known as the Naughty Shuppet, but we're helping her to become a nice and friendly person, like all of you should be."

Nancy wandered on-screen shyly. She looked like a black cloth tied over a balloon; a bright red ribbon had been tied around her head. Her Pokemon speech was nervous, but her human speech was cheerful. "Hi Plusle, hi Minun! I'm working hard to learn."

"We're gonna make you into Nancy the Nice Shuppet," Minun said.

"And today, we're going to learn about polite words that everybody should use. They are 'please', 'thank you', 'you're welcome', and 'sorry'."

" _That sounds useful_ ," Deoxys said, so he watched.

* * *

 

(From a voice-recording of Mewtwo)

Deoxys learns quickly; he's a month old and already can speak the human language partially. He learned that through watching television. I let him to keep him out of my labs, and thus out of trouble, but I'm not sure that helped. He likes to sing commercial jingles, even when he doesn't understand what the product does. Earlier today, he asked me what tampons are for.

That would have been an uncomfortable conversation, but fortunately I was able to make him forget about the question.

He does a lot of mimicry to learn things as well. He's imprinted onto me, so he tries to imitate me as much as possible. In some ways, I'm flattered that someone would want to copy me. But I also realize that this is a genetic behavior and not a recognition of greatness. He believes that I'm his parental figure solely because he saw me first. I've been testing his mental cognition, hoping for some indication of a maturity point, and…

(Minor blast interrupts recording)

Deoxys!

(Faintly) I'm sorry! I didn't mean for it to blow up.

What are you doing with these chemicals? I had them in a locked closet for a reason.

(Faintly) I was just playing around like you do.

I'm not playing around. Go take a shower; I'll clean this up.

* * *

 

Mewtwo stood in front of a large chalkboard, standing still and observing it intently. Some difficult problem seemed to be on his mind. The board was covered in all sorts of numbers and symbols. It was complex and made little sense to Deoxys.

Still, he hovered nearby, hoping to be of some help. His TV shows had taught him all about numbers. At least, he thought it had been all about numbers. There seemed to be a lot more going on with the chalkboard than just being able to count to a hundred. He flicked his twin-whips to point out one symbol among the many. "That's a triangle."

Wincing, Mewtwo turned to him. "That's a delta. It means the summation of all parts."

Deoxys tilted his head and looked at it again. "I didn't learn about a d... delta. Triangles have three sides and three corners, like this." He put one of his whips against two fingers to form a triangle.

He muttered something in annoyance, then took a deep breath. "By that definition, then yes, it is a triangle. But it is also a delta because this is calculus, not basic mathematics like you've been learning."

"I don't know calculus."

"You hardly know about addition and subtraction. There's not much you can help with here."

"Oh. Well, what is this calculus about?"

"Many many things." Mewtwo turned back to his numbers. "This particular group of equations is helping me solve a problem with getting the Giratina artifact from Lucien. Lucien is a powerful Psychic himself; it would take a massive effort for me to take the object directly from him. That is, unless he has something else distracting him."

"Like calculus?"

"Maybe. No, that's not what I have in mind." He began pointing out parts of the equations, mentally running through the plot. "I read an article a while ago on how falling coconuts kill more people every year than bolts of lightning from storms. I mean to use that against him. Even if it's not deadly, his mind won't be in any state to sense me taking the artifact. He's attending a conference in a few days, but getting a coconut to fall on his head then is still a tricky thing to propose."

"Maybe they'll hold the conference in a coconut grove?" Deoxys asked hopefully.

"I doubt that. I don't want to use telekinesis on the coconut, as Lucien would sense that. No, what I have in mind is to get a small bird to carry the coconut over his head and drop it. That could be reasonably explained as a freak accident and I know how to convince a small bird to do a simple task like that. However, they'd need to get in and out fairly quick. I'm trying to decide if a Starly or a Spearow would be better to carry the coconut. Or maybe a Hoothoot if there's a night meeting..." he rubbed his chin.

"Is flying complicated enough to need all these numbers?"

"Yes, even though they do it naturally. Heck, even your hovering capability can only be explained by a complex Gravity vs. Psychic willpower equation."

"How are the birds going to carry the coconuts if they're small? The coconuts aren't that big, yeah, but they would be to a small bird Pokemon."

Mewtwo stilled, not even swishing his tail. "I, I was going to address that problem, in a bit," he said. "Then again, it is a bit too strange to be called off as just a freak accident. I may have to put getting Lucien's artifact on hold. Human psychics, ugh."

"I could throw a coconut! I think."

"No, you'd attract too much attention. Anyhow, you've been speaking better. Have you learned how to read yet?"

"I can read letters and numbers."

"Hm. I seem to think there was a video around here somewhere that taught reading. We should find that and have you follow it. It'll make you more useful."

Deoxys twirled his arm. "Okay! Except, I can't read the video titles to know what they are."

"Come on, let's go look." He took the younger Pokemon's arm and teleported him to the TV room.

* * *

 

(From a voice-recording of Deoxys)

..this do? Hey, there's light on now. 'Recording?' Oops; I don't think I was supposed to touch that.

(Break in recording)

Cool, it recorded my voice! I wonder what Mewtwo uses this for. That could be why he was talking to himself the other day, cause he was actually recording something. He does like to talk a lot. Um, uh, what would I want to record?

Oh, I know! My favorite show, Super Secret Base, was telling a list of things that every child needs to remember in order to be a good boy or girl, and not be a naughty Shuppet. The things they said in the first show I watched were: always say 'please' when you ask for something, don't get mad if you don't get it, always say 'thank you' when you do get it, and say 'sorry' when you make a mistake. Only, they add to this list every day, so I had to watch the entire season to know more. The TV had it on the recorded catalog list, and that's how I watched it all.

And watching the entirety of both seasons taught me how to use the human language! Isn't that cool? I watch a lot of TV. Mewtwo seems busy all the time, although sometimes he comes and gets me for some analysis and tests. I'm not sure what we're doing, but he says that he's learning a lot from them. I guess I should pay better attention.

But the tests are kinda boring, just pick up something, or sit still while I have wires attached to me, or run around. That one was kinda fun, but not as fun as dancing! On TV, I kept hearing stuff about this Glitter Glameow, so I watched a music video of her the other day, and it was so cool. She sings fun songs, like this one that goes, "You are my sunshine, my only sunshine, you make me happy, when skies are gray." That one is fun.

Mewtwo thinks she's annoying though. When I asked him why, he said, "She just is," and then went on about misused talents and lack of creativity. There was also something about how no one over the mental age of thirteen should like her music, but I'm not sure about that. I still like her music, though I should listen to Mewtwo more often. He knows just about everything and besides that, he's my mother, so…

(Faintly) I'm not your mother, Deoxys. And what are you doing with my recorder?

This thing is lots of fun! It records your voice and plays it back whenever you press play. No wonder you like playing with it.

(Faintly) It's not a toy, it's a tool. Put it back where you found it.

Oh, okay. Sorry.

* * *

 

EXTRA: What they're really saying

Plusle: " _I love you…_ "

Minun: " _You love me…_ "

Shuppet: " _Oh Giratina, please take me back! I can't take this manners and good will garbage anymore._ "

Director: "Cut! Nancy!"


	4. Off the Air

Mewtwo crossed his arms over his chest. "So this is Hollywood, the stage that ninety percent of all movies and televisions shows are connected to. A vast concrete wasteland of cavernous buildings and egos."

Deoxys looked around, occasionally twitching his whip arms in excitement. "Oh wow, we're really here! There's so many buildings. How do we know which one is right?"

He switched to the Pokemon language to cut down the amount of spies that could understand. " _Use your psychic senses, Deoxys. They will guide you to the place you desire if you let them._ "

" _Um, okay, I can try. What should I look for?_ "

He waved his hand, unconcerned. " _Whatever you want; just don't get in trouble. I'll handle this mission on my own. I just thought you might want to see some place other than my island castle._ "

_"This is awesome. I'll be careful, I promise."_

_"Good. I'll find you if things get heated to take you back home."_

_"Wait, what are you doing?"_

He smirked. " _Some idiot has decided to make a movie about me. It's probably going to be some hideous B-movie that gets the facts all wrong. They begin filming today, so I am going to go straighten them out._ "

_"Why would they make a movie out of a lie?"_

_"Ah... they just do. You can't trust everything you see on television or in the movies. I've got my own script, which is much better."_

_"Are there any romantic plots like in the soap operas?"_

_"No. Remember: stay out of trouble."_ Mewtwo teleported away.

Deoxys looked around the massive amount of buildings. " _Oh geez, where should I... oh, I know!_ "

And right as he made his decision, he found that he knew exactly where to go.

* * *

 

If there was one thing that the Wailmer Film Association could do well, it was making cheap things appear expensive. The landscaping had all been done at the lowest cost, but gave the grounds an exotic feel. The furnishings were all mass-produced, but colorful fabrics made them look pricey. While their movies and shows cut every corner possible, people believed they were high budgeted.

But the President's office, there was no cheapness there. The President of Wailmer had a kidney-shaped black desk, very glossy and very expensive. He had a top-end business computer, also very glossy and very expensive. He had movie posters that collectors would kill for, exotic plants that he always had the wrong name for, and a kinetic ball sculpture that he felt made him look highly intelligent.

He pulled his pipe away from his face. "Then what are you spending so much money on?"

The director on the other side of the desk was doing his best not to drum his fingers against the glossy surface and leave oily fingerprints. "In order to do this properly, we need to have stunt drivers and stunt cars. There's no way we can get the right effects with anything less."

"You could just..." his glossy expensive phone rang. Wanting this director to feel properly pressured, he said, "Hang on." He picked up the receiver and accepted the call. "Yes, who is it?"

"Nice receiver," a male voice said. "No static at all."

The President frowned. His secretary normally screened all of his calls, so no pranksters should have gotten through. "Who is this? Make sense."

"Can't make scents over a telephone." He laughed.

"Look, I am the President of a very important company. I can't be wasting my valuable time."

"Well I've got all the time in the world and you have a nice phone."

Angry, the President slammed the phone down. "Crazy fool."

"Sir?" the director asked.

"Nothing. Now, we were discussing your budgeting problems."

He swallowed nervously. "Um, yes…"

The phone rang again.

The President hit a button on the phone and picked up the receiver. "Susan, please handle this idiot."

"What idiot, sir?" the secretary asked.

"Hey, who're you calling an idiot?" the prankster asked. "All I did was appreciate our tender moment of interaction."

"Sir?" the secretary asked, trying to smother a snicker.

"That's not what he meant."

"But it's such a nice connection."

The secretary giggled.

"Get rid of this fool," he ordered before cutting off his end of the line. "Now…"

The phone rang again.

* * *

 

The set-up for the movie about him was absolutely ridiculous. Mewtwo felt further insulted by the overly-flashy pyrotechnic set-up, by the completely unscientific stage setting, by the low-grade actors hired to perform... by all of it! It was lots of flash with little substance.

Still, he didn't want to give up this chance to spread his version of events. It wasn't exactly true, but it put him in the best light. And like Deoxys, the general public was easily swayed by popular movies. People would happily accept him as their leader if his script for the movie got out.

However, the director was currently not in the studio. That was okay; he could overwhelm the leader by taking control of the group. He took a cheap cellphone he had bought only for this mission and checked for numbers. He dialed the first seven that came to mind.

One of the stars of the show answered the call. "Yes?"

"You're needed in the conference room of the studio."

"All right, just hang on." He shut off his phone and came back to the hall Mewtwo was hiding in. "This had better not be about my rent," the actor grumbled.

"It's not that," Mewtwo said, quickly pinching the man's nose and tapping him hard on the forehead.

As soon as the power hit him, the actor fell under deep hypnosis. His blank eyes showed that the conscious part of his mind was inactive.

"Go into the conference room," Mewtwo stated. "Wait with the others."

Unable to fight it, the actor went into the conference room where a number of his peers were waiting with blank eyes. It was a slow process, but certain to work.

* * *

 

Deoxys paused outside the studio door to check the sign. "Super Secret Base, all right! He was right." He went inside, quiet in case they were doing anything.

Part of the large studio looked exactly like Plusle and Minun's Secret Base, a grassy room that currently held the colored rug they used when telling stories. Other props were scattered about the rest of the studio, which looked nothing like the Secret Base. This was a bare concrete room with giant lights on tall stands, huge cameras on wheels, white screens, miles of wire, stacks of boxes, and half a dozen empty water jugs for a dispenser.

" _I wonder what all this is for,_ " he whispered to himself. There was no one in this room, but he sensed three Pokemon nearby. He went to find them.

To his delight, he found the two stars hanging out in a room like a sunny garden. Plusle was munching on some Pokeblocks while Minun was dozing off on a plush green cushion. " _Lemme be_ ," Minun mumbled. _"I was having this great dream about hot Pachirisu chicks and banana splits. And hot fudge sauce."_

_"With the chicks or the ice cream?"_

_"Mmm, I'm not saying."_

_"Hi!"_ Deoxys said enthusiastically.

Plusle looked at him and snorted. " _What're you doing here? You're not part of the staff."_

Nervous at meeting his beloved stars, he smiled sheepishly. _"Well, um, I've seen your show, and…"_

 _"Terrible, isn't it?"_ Plusle said. " _Such repetitive drivel and nonsense. But we get to live the high life for it, so who cares?"_

 _"I don't like the kids with sticky hands,"_ Minun said sleepily.

" _But you teach kids good things,_ " Deoxys replied, tilting his head in confusion. " _Like letters and numbers and how to be nice._ "

Plusle twitched his ears and shook his head. " _What use is that stuff? Only the humans pay attention to letters and numbers, and they don't even use the proper Unown forms. They just use it to pass time by staring at paper._ "

_"Books can teach you neat stuff, like TV. I can only read easy books, but I know more stuff from them."_

_"Still doesn't seem all that important. Humans worry about so much stuff because of those letters and numbers. So what if they're staring at papers or staring at a TV? We only care that they continue to do the latter so we can keep doing what we're doing."_

_"Life is sooo nice,"_ Minun mumbled. " _But I'd like some sweet females around. Other than that loser Nancy, of course._ "

" _Isn't she your friend?_ " It didn't make sense to him. On the show, they had gone out of their way to make friends with the Shuppet when she was still naughty. So why call her a loser now?

" _That's just the show."_

 _"And that's all an act,"_ Plusle said. _"We are actors, you know, and that show isn't real."_

_"It's not?"_

The yellow Pokemon stared at him, then laughed. _"Nice one; you almost had me. Seriously, who's that nice and sugary in real life? They have us recite such lousy stuff like remembering to say 'please' and to always wash your hands before you eat."_

_"I do that."_

_"Yeah right. I haven't met one person who acts that politely at all."_

_"Unless they're kissing up to someone,"_ Minun pointed out. " _Some of them really kiss up._ "

Plusle laughed raucously again. " _Oh yeah. Wish they'd do that to us. Anyhow, you might want to skedaddle out of here before the humans come back. I don't mind the trouble, but they get all freaked out about strange Pokemon hanging around._ "

" _Oh, right. Thanks._ "

Greatly disappointed in the two stars, Deoxys drifted away. It wasn't right. How could they act like that when they were so nice and fun on the show? That was worse than the few episodes when Nancy had still been the Naughty Shuppet, the mean-spirited bully who had no manners. Minun even had a whole song about not lying, but then he was lying all the time if this was normal for them.

He came upon another room where there were no skylights and only one plant, a billowing fern. Next to the fern was a Shuppet with a red ribbon. She was lying miserably on a green blanket. An empty can of beer was on the table too. She didn't even notice him come in.

Deoxys didn't know enough to realize that it wouldn't take much to make a small Pokemon like a Shuppet drunk, or even what being drunk meant. _"Hi Nancy_ ," he said, somewhat nervous that she'd turn out as bad as the other two.

Nancy hiccupped.

" _Is something wrong?_ " he asked, coming down to look her face to face. _"Did you get sick?"_

 _"Buzz off,_ " she murmured. _"It's a horrible life on this horrible show and it almost makes me want to die again."_

_"Don't talk like that. What's the matter?"_

Although she had told him to leave, she seemed relieved to have somebody to complain to. The rest of the staff had learned to ignore her halfway through the first season. _"I ain't never gonna evolve and get powerful enough to get outta here. I don't get enough emotions to eat."_

_"You don't eat emotions."_

_"I do! Physical food just isn't enough. I need to have the spicy heat of anger, the sweet intensity of revenge, the salty taste of tears... it's not fair! If I could just evolve, I could do something about it, but I can't evolve cause of this stupid ribbon."_

Deoxys tried to figure that out, but between the odd ideas and her lack of clarity, he wasn't sure he understood. " _Is the ribbon too tight?_ "

Nancy laughed harshly. _"Tight, and it's got a ***** blessing on it. It's torture. And the Everstone core. ***, I wanna torture the guy who had this cruel idea._ "

Wanting to be helpful, he brightened. " _I could take it off, if it'll help. Here._ " He slipped his whip arms around the ribbon and pulled it off Nancy's head.

Hollywood is a dream home for Shuppets as well as star-struck actors. All of the selfish emotions that drenched the city, anger, uncertainty, anxiety, jealousy, vengefulness, all of it was a prime source of energy for the ghost Pokemon. City planners had taken many precautions to keep nuisance Pokemon away, but they hadn't counted on a Shuppet being released in the middle of the city.

Already drunk, Nancy was quickly overwhelmed by the negative energy she soaked up. She jumped up with such power that she crashed halfway through the ceiling. She just giggled and descended. _"Oh, wow, that's a major relief. I'm ***** free!"_

Deoxys smiled. _"That's good._ "

A white light then surrounded her, changing her into a strange doll with long ears... or pigtails, and a zippered mouth. Nancy the Bannette shook her head. _"I should do somethin' for ya, yeah. But you're not very negative."_

_"I try not to be. That's what your show taught me. Only, Plusle and Minun are meanies, worse than you were."_

She laughed, causing strange tremors in his soul. _"Oh yeah, those jerks get to live the high fancy life off some show they don't even believe in. They hurt the people who truly believe, like you."_ She drifted up and looked into his eye patches. _"You can punish them. I know you can. Just put your heart to it and make them feel how far they have betrayed you, their devoted fan."_

Anger used to frighten him, but now he felt hot with anger himself. " _I could._ "

_"I'd like to punish them too, but I think it's more appropriate for you. Go on; I'm right behind you."_

_"Right, I'll do it."_ He hurried back to the room where the two stars were.

Plusle was already leaning against the doorway. _"Hey, why're you still here? Do we have to call security? We ain't supposed to have visitors."_

Deoxys whipped out his arms and wrapped them tightly around Plusle's body. " _I loved your show!"_ he shouted. " _But you obviously don't watch it, or else you wouldn't be so horrible._ "

 _"Eep_ ," Plusle gasped. " _You... you can't really take that nonsense seriously. Can you?_ "

" _You're supposed to be teaching little kids! Can't you live decently for that?"_

Minun hopped through the door, still hazy in his eyes. " _What's going... huh?"_

Nancy laughed, shaking her pigtails. _"Oh, you naughty boys have had this coming to you. I knew it when I first met you."_

_"N-Nancy?"_

She narrowed her eyes. " _Of course, dear Minun,_ " she said spitefully.

Plusle passed out from taking too much damage from Deoxys' Wrap attack. Minun stared at them, paled, and passed out from fear.

Snapping out of it, Deoxys dropped Plusle. " _Oh no, I killed them!"_

Nancy chuckled. " _No, you just defeated them. They'll come to in a few hours. Now_ ," She twirled dramatically, " _I will take my revenge!_ " She rushed out of the studio, making the door bang behind her.

Feeling guilty, Deoxys placed Plusle and Minun on their beds and left as soon as he could.

* * *

 

The cameraman nibbled on the end of his pencil, then put three numbers into the Sudoku grid. "There, that's it!" He glanced around; the studio had grown quiet. "Hmm? Where'd everyone go?"

His phone rang, sounding like a chicken clucking.

He pulled it out; the ID screen called it a studio phone. "Hello?"

"I'm not hiding," a male voice said. "I'm just playing a game with the President. Yeah, that's it."

"What?"

"Just hang up, that's it."

"Okay." He hung up, only to have his phone ring seconds later. It was an unidentified number. "Hello?"

"Come back to the conference room; we have things to discuss."

"All right. Am I late?"

"Yes, but we just called this meeting. Come."

The last word had an aura of command that was unquestionable. "Okay." He hung up and went to the conference room.

Mewtwo had him under quick hypnosis before he knew it. "Go in with the others," he ordered. "We're ready to begin this meeting."

"Good," the cameraman droned, then went into the room and sat in the remaining chair.

After shutting the door, Mewtwo waved his hand to get their attention. "This movie you are making is utter trash," he told them. "It must be completely reworked. I know how to…"

A drunken Banette crashed through the door's window. " _There's the camera crew!_ " she shrieked in delight. " _I can't find anybody else, so you'll have to do. Fear me!_ "

" _Hold on,_ " Mewtwo tried to tell her, but she released a wave of paranoia. The movie crew was already vulnerable thanks to Mewtwo's hypnosis. Being broken from sleep so violently, they all screamed and rushed out the three exits in a panic.

Ignoring Mewtwo, the Bannette laughed maniacally and chased after the cameraman.

Mewtwo blinked. That wasn't supposed to happen. "****."

Deoxys came into the conference room next. "Mewtwo? What happened in here? It's a mess."

"For once, I'm not sure."

He looked around, then sighed. "This place is awful."

"It is." A security alarm began to wail. "We don't want to get caught here. Let's go home."

* * *

 

The trash bin was ringing.

Deoxys paused and looked at it. As far as he knew, trash bins weren't supposed to ring. Looking inside, he saw a gray-colored cellphone. He picked it out and answered it. "Hello?"

"Oh for the love of... this phone doesn't have much time on it. Can you call someone else?"

"Who is this?"

"Just call somebody. Anybody will do."

He pulled the phone away from his face and looked around. "Mewtwo, somebody's called us."

His elder appeared. "What? Nobody's supposed to have the number of this location."

Deoxys handed the phone over. "He said to call somebody."

Mewtwo snatched the phone and snapped, "Who is this?"

"No, I meant call another phone. This one is so rigid and prudish. That, and I don't want to get stuck in a dead appliance."

"This isn't right," he muttered. Tossing the cellphone into the air, he struck it with a ball of shadows.

A bright sparking Pokemon shaped much like a Shuppet flew out of the phone and shrieked. " _**** *** ***! What was that for?_ "

" _What'd he say?_ " Deoxys asked.

" _One of the few cussing phrases in our language,_ " Mewtwo explained. " _Now what were you doing in that phone, Rotom?_ "

The electric ghost snarled and shot the Shadow Ball right back at him. " _**** it, you nearly killed me!_ "

Teleporting out of the way, he struck the ghost telepathically. _"Don't test my patience; I don't have much for strangers. Now, explain yourself_."

Realizing the power he was up against, the Rotom drew his sparks in closer. _"Okay, okay. I travel from phone to phone, looking for the best ones. I was playing phone tag with this pompous President guy when he started locking down the phone lines. I hate getting trapped, so I made quick moves to escape. I wound up on that phone, but its minutes are nearly up. Ugh, being on a dead phone would be such torture."_

 _"Then why didn't you just leave the phone on your own?_ " Deoxys asked.

_"That's not how I operate! I love phones. I had a sexy Pokenav once, but I got excommunicated from it."_

_"I believe you mean exorcised,_ " Mewtwo corrected. " _I don't allow other people to come here unpunished. This is my property and I deal with all trespassers harshly."_

The Rotom trembled. " _It, it was a mistake, honest. I'm sorry. If I knew the phone was nearly dead, I wouldn't have jumped to it."_

 _"You still shouldn't be here,"_ he said darkly.

_"No! I don't even know where here is! Just put me back on the phone. I won't call you ever again, I swear."_

_"That's not good enough."_

_"But he apologized and promised to never call us again,_ " Deoxys pointed out. " _If it was just a mistake he made when he was in trouble, we should just let him go with that._ "

The Rotom nodded in a desperate gratitude. _"Y-yeah, just a mistake."_

_"We shouldn't be lenient. Then again, if you're traveling through phone lines, you can't really tell where we are. You'd have to pass through the satellite scrambling field, though."_

_"Those? They feel weird, but not much of a bother."_

_"Fine."_ He drew the phone back to him and checked it. " _This should work enough for one last call. You'll have to get out quick, though. I don't want to stay on the line too long."_

Sighing, the Rotom bowed. " _I know, thank you. I'll be gone in a blink._ " He transformed into electrical plasma, then moved back into the cheap cellphone.

Mewtwo thought for a moment, then began dialing. "You might not want to stay on the next phone long either."

* * *

 

Giovanni was looking through account records when his personal line buzzed. Not many people had this number, so it had to be something important. Putting his headset on to continue working he put the call through. "Yes?"

"Oh my gosh," a strange male voice said excitedly. "You have such a beautiful earpiece! I want to caress it all night long."

He glared at nothing in particular. "Who is this?"

A/N: This chapter is the closest in the fic to the source material of the Pinky and the Brain cartoon show format.


	5. What Level Cap?

Deoxys had a piece of fat yellow chalk. He used it to draw a string of squiggly lines on the dark stone wall. " _There. It's me! I wonder if I can draw Mewtwo. He'd be kinda hard. He's got a small head and big feet."_ Deoxys made an attempt, drawing a squashed circle for a head, a skinny triangle for the chest and skinny lines for the arms, and then large ovals for legs and tail. _"I guess."_

" _It's out of proportion_ ," Mewtwo said as he appeared behind him.

" _Out of what?"_

" _The relation of shapes within an object. Would you give up your... art... for now? We need to train you for battle."_

" _Ummm, okay, I guess."_ He put the chalk on a small table.

" _You leveled up to three when you fought Plusle and Minun,"_ he explained. " _Still, they were stupidly weak. You need to bring your level and skills up so you can fight properly."_

" _Um, do I have to fight? It wasn't nice of me to fight them; I was just too angry."_

" _It is normal for us to fight. If you won't stand up for yourself, more powerful Pokemon will take advantage of you. You must become powerful."_

" _I guess, if it's that important."_

Mewtwo nodded, then teleported them to a distant land. Specifically, to an empty Route with lots of tall grass around. " _We'll start here. Humans shouldn't be around today and the Pokemon are about your level."_

Deoxys twiddled his one thumb. _"So, what do I do?"_

" _Well you have the Wrap attack. What else do you know? It should be instinctual."_

" _Uh... Leer?"_

He huffed. _"Just Leer and Wrap? It'll have to do. Well go through this tall grass. If you seek a fight, it shall come to you."_

" _Okay,"_ he replied nervously. He drifted into the tall grass; it tickled his legs. The sun was shining warmly and nearby trees rustled peacefully. " _This place is nice, actually. It'd be good for a picnic."_

" _We're here for battles, not picnics."_

" _I know, but still... hmm?"_ Something had shuffled around the grass near him. Deoxys leaned over and brushed some aside. _"Who's there?"_

A burst of wild laughter responded as a purple rodent leapt out at him. _"Bwahahaha! Behold, for I am the almighty Rattata! Fear my fearsome fangs!"_ He snarled, showing off large white buckteeth.

" _Whaa!"_ Deoxys screamed, then jumped back. " _Th-those are fearsome."_

" _You're not almighty,"_ Mewtwo scorned. _"You're as common as a weed."_

The Rattata flicked his tail. " _So you have no faith in me, eh?"_ He charged at Mewtwo and bit his ankle.

Mewtwo cursed loudly and tore the rodent away by telekinesis, then blasted him far into the grass with Psychic. _"That is almighty power, loser!"_

A moan came from the grass. _"I... I'm gonna go to sleep now... for a week."_

Dreoxys shivered at the bloody wound on Mewtwo's leg. _"Are you okay? That looks bad."_

" _Psst. This is nothing."_ He used Recover on himself to heal the wound before it got infected. _"That one was fairly high-level for this area. That attack it used on me, Bite, is of the Dark type. As Psychics, we're vulnerable to that type."_

" _Oh. So be careful of any Dark types, right?"_

" _Be very careful around them. There shouldn't be any here. Try again."_

" _But what about that Rattata? Is he going to be okay?"_

" _He'll be just fine. In fact, I expect his help to show up any moment now."_

" _His help?"_

Right then, a round pink creature burst out of the trees. " _Chansey's here to save the day!"_ she sang. She rushed into the tall grass and picked up the unconscious Rattata. _"You'll get better all the way!"_ Then she rushed off with her patient.

" _At least she's cheerful,"_ Deoxys commented.

" _At least it wasn't a Blissey. Those can be a hassle. So, on with your training."_

" _Um, right."_ He moved through the grass again.

Before long, a second Rattata jumped out at him. " _You have keeeled my brother,"_ he sneered.

" _I didn't... and he's not dead."_

The Rattata shrugged. _"It's just a joke, really. But I'm no joke! I'll crush you!"_

" _Fat chance,"_ Mewtwo said. _"Go for it."_

" _All righ... hey!"_ Deoxys put his hand over a bruise that Rattata had given him with a Tackle. He snapped out his whips and wrapped them around the rodent's body. _"I wasn't ready."_

" _That's the point,"_ the Rattata replied before he struggled to get out of the Wrap. He managed to slip away, but then knocked his head on the ground and passed out.

He drifted back. _"Um... that wasn't too hard."_

" _They shouldn't be, although you got lucky it knocked itself out. Wrap itself doesn't do much damage."_

Then he twirled his whips around _. "Oh, I think I leveled up!"_

Mewtwo nodded. _"Good. Did you learn anything?"_

" _Um... no."_

" _Chansey's here to save the day!"_ the pink Pokemon sang as she ran back out of the woods. She grabbed the Rattata. _"You'll get better all the way!"_ Then she rushed back.

Deoxys twitched his arms. _"Do they do that every time?"_

" _Pretty much. So you've gotten to level 4, but there's still much further for you to go."_

" _What level are you?"_

" _197."_

" _That... much?"_

Mewtwo shrugged. _"I fight a lot. But you should be good around fifty or so. It'll take a while, but then you'll be able to stand up for yourself."_

" _I guess so."_ As he spoke, he drifted through the grass again.

This time, a tan bird rushed out at him. _"Hey eeediot, you stepped on my tail feathers!"_

" _Oh, sorry... wait, I wasn't walking."_

" _Take this!"_ The bird kicked up a spray of sand.

" _That's nasty,"_ Deoxys replied as he wrapped his whips around the Pidgey.

" _And this isn't?"_ she sneered as she abruptly took off and tried to fly away.

Deoxys wasn't expecting that and got jerked forward. _"Hey, watch it!"_

" _You eeeediot."_ She swerved back around and tackled him in the head. But when she tried to get away again, his whips tightened around her neck and made her pass out.

He dropped the Pidgey. _"Ow, that hurt."_

" _Get used to it. Battles hurt."_ He handed over a yellow-orange berry. _"Here, eat this Sitrus. That should take care of it for now."_

" _Thanks,"_ Deoxys said, then ate the berry. After a moment, during which the Chansey rushed in, grabbed the Pidgey, then rushed off again, he felt a lot better. _"Will she get mad at me for knocking other Pokemon out?"_

" _No, but if we get a Blissey to show up, brace yourself. So you leveled up again."_

" _Yeah, this is pretty easy."_

" _It'll get tougher soon, believe me. Levels on this route range from 4 to 7, except that one rogue 9 Rattata. Since they're above your level, you earn better experience. But now that you're coming up on their average, it'll take more fights to level up. And did you learn anything?"_

He shook his head.

Mewtwo rubbed his chin. _"Hmm. I'm not certain what your movelist is, so I can't say when you'll learn your next move. We should work around here until you get to 8 or 9, and then that'll be a day."_

Just then, a red haired girl came skipping onto the Route. "Oh, I'm starting out today, hurray," she half-carried her tune. "I'm gonna catch me some adorable Pokemon, hurray. I'm a traveling with my sweetie-wheatie Eevee, hurray, whom I like to hug and squeeze and love into itty-bitty pieces, yay!" She broke her song a moment to hug her Eevee tight.

The brown furred Pokemon in her arms whined. _"Ow, ow, ow, not so hard."_

" _Good grief,"_ Mewtwo muttered. _"If I were that Eevee, I'd bite her."_

"You should be more careful with him," Deoxys told the girl.

The red-haired girl stopped in her tracks and dropped her Eevee. She stared at them with wide green eyes. Putting her hands to her mouth, she gasped. "Oh my gosh, I've never seen Pokemon like you both before. You must be super rare."

" _Are we?"_ Deoxys asked.

" _One of a kind,"_ Mewtwo replied. Then he shook his head. "Don't even bother, girl," he told her in disdain.

The Eevee looked hazy. _"Ooo, I can breathe again,"_ he murmured.

"But you would be so awesome for when I become the greatest Coordinator ever. I mean, just thinking of you for the Contest presentations... in a nice red ribbon."

"No." Then he teleported away.

" _Mewtwo?"_ Deoxys looked around, eventually sensing his elder among the trees.

'Hang on,' he said telepathically before Deoxys came to him. 'This is a very important lesson for you to learn. That is, how to fight against a Trainer.'

The girl straightened up. "Well I can still get you. Come on, Eevee!"

Deoxys turned to the Eevee. Okay, he could do this.

'Yes. First of all, that Eevee. It's a starter Pokemon, which has been specially bred to start out strong. It'll be harder to take down than the wild ones you've faced so far.'

The Eevee shook his head. _"Aw man. At least it's not against that other guy."_ He shuddered, then jumped into a ready position.

'Second, about Trainers. They're humans who enslave Pokemon to fight for them.'

" _That's awful,"_ Deoxys whispered.

'I know. I'll give you the full sermon later if I feel like it. The Pokemon are held captive by Pokeballs, like that sphere on her belt. Most likely, she will use that Eevee to weaken you, then throw an empty Pokeball at you. At that point, use your powers to break the ball's grasp. If you get weak, use the Sitrus berry to heal up.'

" _The... oh, this one?"_

'Yes, but I can't give you any more until after the battle. Now, it's battle time.'

The enslavement part sounded mean, so Deoxys gave Eevee a harsh Leer. In return, he got Sand Attack in his face again. He spat out some of the sand. _"That's still nasty."_

"Go Brownie!" the girl cheered.

" _If I could really get away and go..."_ he muttered, then rushed up to tackle him.

Deoxys flipped his twin-whips back, then struck with Wrap. _"Got you!"_

" _I'm used to it,"_ he replied, then jump-tackled him.

He was hurt bad, so Deoxys took his Sitrus and ate it. But while he was doing that, the girl took a Pokeball and threw it at him. "You're mine!"

There was a flash of light that momentarily disoriented him. It felt like some unearthly power had taken hold of his body and was trying to drag him down a whirlpool. Deoxys panicked.

'Fight it.'

Mewtwo's thoughts broke through, thankfully. Striking out with his mind as powerfully as he could, he lashed out against the Pokeball's grip. It seemed to snap, sending him back into the real world. Brownie was shaking his body, as if getting rid of the pressure from Wrap.

The girl stomped her foot down. "What? No! How could you break out? We could have such fun together... cream him, Brownie!"

" _I'm not being caught,"_ Deoxys said, then struck with Wrap again.

" _Cut it out!"_ Brownie cried, then bit his arm.

It wasn't the Bite attack, but it hurt. Hard. Deoxys shrieked and slammed Brownie onto the ground repeatedly. _"Ow ow ow! Lemme go, lemme go!"_

Brownie soon passed out, his head beginning to swell. His Trainer was shellshocked. "Brownie? Oh my gosh."

"I'm sorry," Deoxys said. "But I don't want to be caught."

"You evil evil Pokemon!" she screamed, then recalled her Eevee and ran away.

"But..." he started to say.

Mewtwo appeared next to him. _"She's just mad. You're not evil for that. Every battle has a risk for serious injury. Still, if only that was an actual move instead of a panic attack, we'd be able to move faster."_

" _I don't think I'm going to do that again."_

" _So you leveled up twice there, to 7. Anything new?"_

" _Um... no. Is that Eevee going to be okay?"_

" _He'll be fine, although I think that girl is going to be in deep trouble. We still have work to do on you."_

" _Do I have to fight again? I feel pretty bad about that last one."_

" _You..."_ Mewtwo suddenly paused as he recalled something. He didn't say anything for a moment, then shook his head. _"If you don't want to, I shouldn't make you. Let's go home then."_

" _Thanks."_

* * *

 

On Deoxys' second day of training, Mewtwo brought him to a warehouse. The mutant glanced around with his senses and only found Pokemon in the river. _"Are we going swimming?"_

" _No, we're going into the warehouse."_

" _But there doesn't seem to be any Pokemon in there to fight."_

" _There's a few, but we're after some Technical Machines."_

He tilted his head. _"Aren't all machines technical?"_

" _No... well yes, I suppose they are all technical in a way. No, a TM is a special CD that transfers unusual abilities to us. I want to get you at least one good battle TM to make leveling easier."_

" _So how do we know what I can use?"_

" _I'll be able to tell. We'll work together today, all right?"_ He held his right hand out.

" _Okay!"_ He wrapped his arm around Mewtwo's and shook hands.

A screech made Deoxys jump. A Gliscor fluttered down to in front of the warehouse entrance. _"No trespassing! Not from anybody!"_

" _Are you sure you want to challenge me?"_ Mewtwo growled.

" _No trespassing by anybody,"_ she repeated, then sent a blast of wind at them.

Mewtwo readily deflected it, then struck her with Psychic. The attack knocked her out instantly. _"You poor fool."_

" _Hey, I leveled up again?"_ Deoxys said uncertainly. _"But I didn't do anything."_

" _You're battling with me, so you'll gain levels much faster. I just wanted you to know how to fight on your own first."_

" _And I finally learned something new! Um, it's..."_ he closed his eyes and considered it. An angry phantom image of him flashed between the two Pokemon.

Mewtwo tensed and backed off. "****... _You actually...?"_

Deoxys looked at him, then got worried. _"Huh? Did I do something wrong? It's called Night Shade."_

" _I know what that **** attack is called."_ He shook his head and put his hand over his eyes. _"Blast it all."_

" _What is it? I won't use it again if it's bad."_

" _No... actually, it's not that great now. It always does damage equal to your level. At eight, it isn't going to do much to anyone, but it could get nasty later on."_ He put his hand down. _"I just had a bad experience with that attack when I was young. Go ahead and hang onto it. It could be an asset later on. Let's get going."_

The warehouse was made up of miles of caverns, filled with all kinds of merchandise that was being stored. Mewtwo seemed to know right where he was going and led them to a wall shelf that was packed with CDs. Levitating himself off the ground, he examined the options.

Deoxys glanced around, but wasn't sure what all the attack names meant. One CD seemed to call him, though, like when he tried to find a place he didn't know. He went over and picked it up. The CD had little violet hearts on it. _"Hey Mewtwo, what's this one?"_

" _No, no... hmm... this one should do."_ He pulled out a light blue CD. _"Here we go. Aerial Ace. It's not the most powerful, but it never misses. That should do you for a while."_

" _What about this one?"_ He showed off the one he had found.

Mewtwo frowned. _"Return? Sure, you could use it, but I don't see why you would."_

" _What's it do?"_

" _It produces an energy attack based on how much a Pokemon loves their Trainer. You're not owned by anyone."_

" _But you're training me and I like you."_

" _Hmm."_ He rubbed his chin. _"True. I know Frustration and that works well enough. It might work. And it's no waste anyhow."_

" _What's Frustration do?"_

" _An energy attack based on how much a Pokemon hates their Trainer. It's not seen very often."_

" _So how do you use it without a Trainer?"_

He smirked _. "I've never been caught, but there is one human's influence that I can never escape. If I'm using Frustration, I'm not messing around. There's some guards around here we could practice against. But first you need to learn these and we don't have a TM case."_

Deoxys looked over the two CDs. _"Do I just listen to these?"_

" _Not quite. Fortunately, the method of passing on these skills depends on a pseudo-Psychic crystal. I can pass these skills along."_

Mewtwo took the Aerial Ace TM out of its sleeve, then caused it to levitate vertically between his open palms. It spun rapidly, causing strange vibrations in the air. Taking hold of the energy mentally, the older Pokemon then guided the information into Deoxys' mind. It took a minute and a half to pass Aerial Ace and Return to him.

" _That's it then. Let's go practice."_ He teleported off.

Deoxys chased him down. _"Hey Mewtwo, did you ever know a human that you liked?"_

He was silent for a moment, then replied, _"Not really. Any that I have met have been either hopelessly dull or instinctively cruel. They would be much better off if they left the world to us Pokemon."_

"Halt!" Two men wearing blue uniforms appeared. They looked past the two intruders, apparently confused. "It's just a pair of Pokemon?"

" _This pair should be perfect,"_ Mewtwo said. He levitated himself off the ground, then glared at the security guards.

"We should get rid of them before they cause damage," the right one said. He picked out a Pokeball and released a Graveller. His partner followed up with a Combusken.

" _Easy targets,"_ Mewtwo said, giving a dismissive wave.

The Combusken snarled at him. _"Easy, huh? You're going down!"_

He waved his hand at the large bird. _"Aerial Ace him."_

" _Okay."_ Following the new skill's instructions, he levitated up, then dash-flew into the Combusken. An envelope of air surrounded him, then smashed into the Fire type and knocked him to the ground.

Combusken got back to his feet, though. _"You ain't got us ye... huh?"_

The Graveler was unconscious, thanks to a Bubblebeam attack from Mewtwo. _"Good. Now let's see if your theory on Return is correct."_

"Shoot," the Combusken's Trainer said. "Blaze Kick the floating one."

"Um," the other one released his second Pokemon, a Gastly. "Poison Gas."

Before anyone else struck, Mewtwo knocked Gastly out cleanly with a Psychic. The Combusken summoned an aura of fire around himself, but Deoxys emitted a white light that finished the final opponent off. The two guards were out of Pokemon.

"You made a major mistake in challenging us," Mewtwo told them, his voice intensely angry all of a sudden.

"We'd better get the boss," one said, before running off.

"Or the police," the other suggested while running away too.

" _The police?"_ Deoxys asked, afraid. _"B-but we didn't do anything wrong. Right?"_

" _We didn't,"_ Mewtwo replied, a dark tone underlining his words. He grabbed hold of his partner's arm. _"You stay put."_

There was a flash of a teleport, then Deoxys found himself alone outside. _"Hey... Mewtwo?"_ He looked around. _"I guess I should stay put. But what about the police? They always win on TV."_

He waited, but the minutes went by slowly. There were some moths flying around a streetlight. But they were animals, not Pokemon. The animals had very basic abilities which were nothing compared to Pokemon powers. Some animals could fly, some could sting, some could fight in an uncontrolled manner, and some could even poison. Why were these lowly animals so powerless when Pokemon and humans were so powerful? He'd have to ask Mewtwo sometimes.

From the river, he sensed a different kind of Pokemon drifting along. Deoxys went over and saw an Abra sitting in a life ring. He seemed puzzled at his current location. Curious, Deoxys floated over the waves to meet him. _"Do you need help?"_

" _Not really,"_ the Abra replied. He vanished in a teleport, then reappeared on shore. When Deoxys came back over to him, he said, _"It must have gotten loose after I fell asleep there."_

" _What were you doing sleeping on the river?"_

" _Seeking knowledge. I wanted to know what it was like to sleep on the water."_

" _I see. How was it?"_

" _Different, but relaxing. Maybe too much so; predators could have seen me easier out there."_ He rubbed his eyes before taking a deep look at him. _"So you... you are Deoxys, child of the mysteries of the night sky, and child of the forces of the human sciences. Curious."_

" _What do you mean? I have a mother. I think I should be calling him father or something. He told me to wait for him here while he did something inside."_

" _You are a child still; perhaps it is not time that you know."_

" _So what're you? I can't teleport yet, and I can't read thoughts as well as you apparently can."_

" _You will learn things in your own time. I am Abra, seeker of the knowledge that lies hidden."_

" _Hidden where?"_

Abra shrugged. _"In all of us, in the night sky, in the mother planet. In the depths of sleep, I can grasp these secrets. My power has not awakened to evolution yet, so the waking world remains a mystery."_

" _What do you mean?"_

" _You don't have to worry about that. It seems that your power is unchanging, thus you will never evolve."_

" _Actually, my power is that I can change form. I just haven't gotten the hang of it yet."_

" _I mean something else."_ Abra's ears flicked up. He looked towards the warehouse, then seemed to shrink back defensively. He spoke again, worried. _"Deoxys? You said your father was in there?"_

" _Yeah, there were some people threatening to call the police on us."_

" _I sense a deep well of hatred, a joy in causing destruction and pain. I sense murder."_

Deoxys stiffened _. "Oh no. Is he in trouble?"_

Abra lowered his ears and seemed uncertain. _"If my knowledge were waking, would I know what to say?"_

" _I could go help him, I think. But he's so powerful that he should be able to handle any problem. Besides, he told me to wait. Maybe he knew I'd be in danger if I stayed in there."_

" _You are in danger if you stay here."_

" _I am?"_

" _You would be safer if you left him. You should run from here. But you... you would need help. There is a stone tower…"_

Deoxys shook his head. _"No, Mewtwo's a good guy. He's nice to me and he's taught me a lot. I'll stay with him; he can protect me."_

Abra put his hand over his mouth. _"But who would protect you from...?"_

Mewtwo appeared in front of the warehouse entrance. He seemed unhurt. _"Bah, hardly a challenge anymore."_

In a blink, Abra vanished for good. But he sent a thought to Deoxys before getting out of range. 'I hope you have the blessings of Mew.'

" _Who was that just now?"_ Mewtwo asked, appearing by him.

" _An Abra. He was saying weird things."_

He rolled his eyes. _"Oh, one of them. Useless first stagers, sleeping most of the day away. We're leaving; I need a shower."_

When they appeared back at the castle, Deoxys asked, " _What happened in there?"_

" _It would have been too much for you to handle. I was making sure you didn't get hurt."_ He then teleported off to clean up.

He sighed. _"Oh good. That Abra doesn't understand anything."_

* * *

 

EXTRA: Levels of Insanity

So, how much damage would a level 197 Mewtwo do with a maxed Frustration?

You could level a stadium with it.

And if Mewtwo is level 197, what levels are the older legendaries at?

Maybe the better question is: am I using the Star Ocean or Disgaea leveling system here?

_An extra explanation for those who may not know: SO's level cap is 255, while Disgaea's level cap is 9999. And the red-head girl is a double parody, of Pokemon Mary-Sues and of Elmyra from Tiny Toons (who ruined the Pinky and the Brain spinoff!)._


	6. Marble Madness

Mewtwo shifted the magnifying lens and continued scrutinizing the picture. "Difficult to tell with this newsprint photo," he murmured. "But it just might be that."

A snap of plastic caught his attention. He reached out telekinetically in the direction his sixth sense gave him and caught two silver marbles. They probably belonged to some game Deoxys was playing.

Right then, Deoxys rushed into the room. " _Mewtwo, I lost my... oh, there they are."_ He took it out of the air. _"I'm sorry. That piece was bad and the marbles flew right out."_

" _What are you doing with marbles?"_

He made a little skip of floating in happiness _. "I was exploring around some of the storage rooms and I found this huge container filled with pieces to a marble race track! I'm putting them together to make a giant race. The marbles get going really fast down the tower stairs."_

" _I hope you're having fun with that."_

" _Sure!"_ He started back out to fix his track.

" _Hold on for a moment. Come look at this picture."_

He nodded and came up to the table. The newspaper photo was of three humans standing in a toy museum. In the window display behind them there were one hundred and twenty-seven marbles. _"Wow, that's a lot of marbles."_

" _This man here,"_ he pointed to a white-haired man wearing an obnoxiously loud patchwork jacket, _"owns the largest collection of marbles in the world. He's lent over a million of them to this toy museum for a charity fundraiser display."_

" _Oh wow, he's awesome. I only have six marbles and they're all just like this one."_

Mewtwo pushed the lens back over the marble owner's hand. _"Now take a careful look at this one. He reports that this is the most valuable in his collection."_

" _Huh, that's pretty,"_ Deoxys replied. It was made of clear glass with a cat's-eye formation inside, one part seafoam green, one part grass green.

He crossed his arms over his chest. _"It's difficult to tell for certain, but he says that this is a Key Item, a 'Sea Foam Eye'."_

" _What's a Key Item?"_

" _It's a special item that performs a task. They may or may not be enchanted. This one is connected somehow to the legendary Pokemon Lugia. If the owner activates this Key Item's power on the Sea Foam Islands in Kanto, he or she may summon Lugia at any time from anywhere around the world."_

" _That is special."_

Mewtwo frowned. _"It's terrible. Why would Lugia allow such a thing to exist?"_

" _How's that terrible?"_

" _How is it not? All someone has to do is complete some minor task at Sea Foam and then Lugia has to come at that person's will, no matter what he is doing. I mean, really, how can he expect to have any peace when this item is in existence? Not only that, but some legendaries have several such Key Items connected to them. It's a disgrace."_

Deoxys put his whip arms to his chin. _"I suppose that could be trouble."_

" _It is. I'm going to destroy that Eye."_

" _Why? Is Lugia your friend?"_

He snorted. _"No. I just can't stand the idea of the existence of these Key Items. Even those ones that boost a legendary's power when held onto... how is that possible? Are they purposely holding back? There's no way some mere object can enhance our already advanced power. Anyhow, this collector has another marble that isn't shown here which could be of more use to me than him. The Fire Seed, an item that can produce Fire Spin on its own. It's a skill that I would like to know."_

" _So you can learn from the marble?"_

" _I think so. I need to do some more planning, but we'll be heading out later."_

" _So I can come?"_

Mewtwo nodded. " _Yes, I thought the world's largest collection of marbles would interest you."_

" _That's awesome! Thanks."_

* * *

 

Mewtwo and Deoxys appeared in a playfully manicured garden. Brightly colored flowers surrounded wind-powered sculptures of birds, people on bikes, and a flying saucer. Small tunnels were built as crawl spaces for children to explore. Benches made to look like china dishes offered places for parents to rest. A group of flags hid the two Pokemon for the time being.

" _This place is great,"_ Deoxys said in awe.

" _It's also guarded by a security system,"_ Mewtwo replied. _"I'm going to deactivate it. Stay... wait."_ He turned quickly to where he had sensed two others.

" _Hey, it's us,"_ Deoxys said, puzzled.

And it seemed to be that. Mirror images of both of them stood several feet away. _"Just go on,"_ the false Mewtwo said. _"It's fine."_

" _But I didn't think anyone was like us,"_ the real Deoxys responded, nervous now. His twin-whips tensed.

" _Those are Dittos,"_ Mewtwo stated. With a pulse of Psychic energy, he forced them out of their Transform state and back into the muddy pink Pokemon they normally were.

" _Really, we don't mean any harm,"_ one Ditto said, with a touch of panic.

He glared at them. _"I know you don't. Anyhow, you descended from these Pokemon, Deoxys. Sort of."_

" _Really?"_

" _Really. I'm going ahead with the mission. I'll call you when it's safe to come in."_ He vanished.

" _Is he Ditto?"_ one asked.

" _Something of him does seem so,"_ the other replied.

Deoxys went over to the two. Shyly, they condensed themselves. _"It's okay, I won't hurt you. And Mewtwo knows everything, so he must be right."_

" _Can you Transform?"_ one asked, relaxing her body and slithering forward.

" _I, uh, I can shift form. I have four of them. But I can't go making myself look like other Pokemon."_

The Ditto stretched herself up and sniffed him. _"You smell like one of us, with something extra. It's like the night sky somehow."_

" _I don't think he's like us."_ The other Ditto then slithered away into one of the tunnels.

She looked after her peer, then back to Deoxys. _"You are strange, but powerful. Are you Psychic, Ghost, or Dark? You were not influenced by our touch, yet you did not battle."_

" _We're both Psychic. What do you mean by your touch?"_

" _Oh, we are not very strong. We are just Normals, you see. The only thing we can do is copy others and fight them with their own powers."_

" _Really? That sounds like a great power."_

" _Shh,"_ she replied. _"We do not bother anyone and we do not like anyone to bother us. So we have this other power that is secret. But, I believe you are like us enough. Will you keep this secret?"_

Deoxys nodded. _"Yes, I promise I won't tell the secret."_

She slid a bit closer. _"We can send weak mental suggestions to others, to make them think that we are harmless and not worth the trouble to fight. It keeps predators away from us. However, if someone comes upon you with the intent to fight you, the touch does not work. It also doesn't work with those three types I said, because they are strong in the mind and the touch is weak."_

He twirled his twin-whips. _"That's really clever. Can I do that?"_

" _Send a mental suggestion? I would guess so. You descend from us and you are gifted with a strong mind. Your suggestive power could be stronger."_

" _So how do I do that?"_

She closed her eyes to think, then transformed back into him _. "It is like a mask, like the appearance I hold now. It is the outside which people experience first. In the outermost layer of your mind, hold to the thought that you are harmless and friendly, not worth being attacked."_

" _Outermost layer of my mind?"_ He shielded his ocular skins, then considered his own mind. Mewtwo had taught him about the layers of the mind, that one should keep the true self within the most inner layer so that others could not mentally manipulate it. He had said to keep the outermost layer like a shield, while she said make it appear harmless and friendly. Could he do both?

After a minute, she whistled softly. _"That is it. You may experience fewer fights in the wild areas."_

" _I think I'll have to practice that. Thank you, Miss Ditto."_

She chuckled. _"You're welcome. It was Deoxys, right?"_

" _Yes."_

The Ditto turned back to herself. She put her hands together and bowed her head. _"Deoxys, you must be one of the thousand."_

" _Thousand what?"_

" _You have much power, but do not forget that most of us don't. Do not forget kindness and mercy or you will face the Judgment of the others."_

He nodded. _"Um, okay. I'll always be nice."_

" _Thank you."_ She went into the tunnel after the other Ditto.

Deoxys looked around the garden for something to do, but he got a telepathic message. 'The system is disarmed, so come inside.'

He went into the toy museum. There were many interesting toys on display. If he had a lot of time, he would have liked to explore the whole museum. But not knowing how long Mewtwo intended to take, he went straight for the marble display. _"One of the Dittos taught me something."_

Mewtwo glanced at him, then went back to studying the Sea Foam Eye. _"I see. It might help in some situations to get others to accept your strange looks. But it doesn't always work, so isn't reliable."_

" _Do you know about it? They said it was a secret power."_

" _Whatever 'secret' they think they're holding, mental suggestions are a key part of a Psychic's powers. In battle, they aren't much use, but outside of battle, we can do a lot."_

Deoxys then went around the room and looked at the marbles. There were all sorts here: swirled and cat-eyed, clear and metallic, sparkling and opaque. _"These are a lot cooler than my silver ones. Mewtwo, would you play marbles with me?"_

Mewtwo swore.

" _Um, sorry?"_

" _Not you, this marble! It's no Key Item, only a regular old cat's eye marble. Sure, it looks somewhat more mystical, but it's just another piece of glass like all of them."_

" _Oh, well, I guess that's better for Lugia then."_

" _And that Fire Seed is a fake too. Gah!"_ As he tensed, all of the glass in the room shattered. The marbles shot away from Mewtwo, then bounced off the walls and scattered over the floor. A security alarm began wailing. _"Let's see them clean that up."_

Deoxys trembled at the alarm, but also felt afraid of Mewtwo, with as angry as he was. _"I, I thought you disarmed the security."_

" _I disarmed the doors and cameras. ****** show-off. You and your stupid marble collection are worthless. Well now what? This was a total waste of an evening."_

The young Pokemon scanned his mind for anything that might calm Mewtwo down. _"Um... hey, can we go out for ice cream?"_

" _Ice cream?"_

" _Yeah, um, I saw this show on TV where these kids were upset about something, and so they went out for ice cream to make up for the bad day. That sounds like a good idea."_

Mewtwo took a deep breath. For a moment, Deoxys worried that it was a mistake to offer that. Then he said, _"Actually, that does sound like a good idea. There should be some place open this time of night. Come on. I hope they have chocolate."_

Pleased with this, Deoxys twirled his twin-whips. _"I've never had ice cream before; this is exciting."_

* * *

 

" _That ice cream was good,"_ _Deoxys said, finishing up the story._ _"I liked the Cheri on top too."_

Mewtwo's head drooped; his eyes were closed.

"Mewtwo?" He floated closer and noticed his steady breathing. _"Oh, you fell asleep. But you should be in bed, so you can get better."_

He considered taking him to his room by teleporting. But since he'd learned that skill a few days ago, his control wasn't good. Focusing, he shifted to his Defense Forme, then picked up Mewtwo. He mumbled a bit, but didn't wake up as Deoxys carried him back to his bedroom. Once he made sure Mewtwo wouldn't get cold, he went back to the kitchen to get another glass of water.

" _I hope you feel better soon, mother,"_ Deoxys added quietly before he shut the door and went to find something else to do.

* * *

 

Did you ever know a human that you liked?

Not really.

But long ago, when I was only a clone of Mew…

* * *

 

"Mewtwo? Are you in here?" He walked across the wooden floor, his footsteps clearly marking his position.

Mewtwo was small, lavender skinned with indigo tips. He hid in the top shelf of a bookshelf, with a couple of large books beside him. Grinning to himself, he waited until the scientist with blue glasses paused by the aisle. Then he lifted one of the heavy books with his mind and tossed it at him.

The movement caught his eye in time; the scientist grabbed hold of the book before it slammed into his head. "Whoa! Watch it there."

Mewtwo giggled. _"Hah, got you good this time!"_

He shook his head. "Mewtwo, you can't be doing that. You might hurt somebody."

He floated down to eye level with the scientist. _"But it was funny."_

"It's not right to be hurting people without reason. Just look at this book." He held it up. "It must have a thousand pages, or close to it. If I hadn't of caught it, you could have given me a concussion with it."

He let his tail droop. _"Is that bad? I'm sorry."_

He set the book aside and pushed his glasses back. "At least it was only me. I forgive you; I know you don't know much better yet. But you need to learn these things."

Mewtwo perked up. _"Learn? I've been learning stuff!"_ He flew to a lower shelf, where he pulled out a high school math workbook. Opening it up, he showed off his work. _"See? I got them all done."_

With a look of awe, the scientist took the workbook and scanned over the page. He flipped through a few more. "You did this? Mewtwo... this is astonishing, for a Pokemon barely a week old to have done this."

" _You like it?"_

"You would have learned not only math, but also reading and writing. My goodness. If you managed this, then what does she know?"

" _Huh? She who?"_ He tried prodding at the scientist's mind, but couldn't read the blur of racing thoughts.

However, there was a clear stain of worry, which grew by the second. He looked to the door, then sighed and turned to Mewtwo. He spoke quietly. "I'm not supposed to do this, but our sponsor has proposed doing some experiments with you which... I don't know, it doesn't seem right. I don't even know if what we did already is right anymore. But you're here and someone needs to think of you."

The small Pokemon drifted forward and tapped the scientist's forehead. _"Your thoughts are fuzzy, but powerful. What's going on?"_ He increased the focus of his mind in order to get a better look.

"I'm going to take you away from here. You may like this library, but I know of libraries that dwarf this one. You'll find more books there. Will you come with me?"

At the word 'library', Mewtwo got a definite image from the scientist's mind. It was of a place filled with books, a room larger than the main lab here. There were feelings of contentment, relaxation, and peace associated with this remembered place. So he could go to this place with so many books that it would take him years to read them all? It seemed magical.

"Let's get out of here before anyone notices."

"Before?"

The scientist's blood went cold. Still psychically connected to him, Mewtwo became afraid as well. They turned to see someone shadowed in the doorway. There was a glint of metal and a loud noise, just before the scientist with blue glasses died.

The young Psychic felt his mind shatter as the bullet shattered his ally's brain. In a flash of pure hatred, he screamed and attacked the shadows in the doorway. In response, a crackle of electricity shot through his body, slowing his nerves down. A Gastly then drifted into the light and cackled. _"Down, boy!"_ He caused a giant phantom of himself to scream back.

Feeling his fear turn into pain, Mewtwo dropped to the floor. He was barely conscious. The Gastly came down and grinned at him, blocking his view of two men who walked into the room.

"Too bad. He was a bright one, but the weak link in this lab's loyalty. Clean up the scene so they don't know who exactly did this."

"Yes sir."

"And restrain our experiment. I don't know who let it wander about, but that was a big mistake."

After that, his life quickly went to hell.

* * *

 

Deoxys…

Cyrus read through papers with the information his researchers had found. The Pokemon with the Village People tribute band was not their usual dancer; it was one called Deoxys. This strange one, apparently a Psychic type, had been spotted in various places by various people. These events were nearly always around the activity of Mewtwo in the past year. The first event linking them was when Deoxys was created, by a group of scientists firing a giant laser at a meteorite with a space virus on it. Mewtwo had immediately run off with the mutant.

"I swear, some people thrive on weirdness," the Galactic leader muttered as he entered a conference room. He tucked the papers into his suitcase and looked around.

The room didn't look very important. There were generic paintings of generic landscapes on the wall. There was a plain false wood table in the middle, rectangular and narrow with nothing on it. There were hard plastic chairs in a dim sort of orange color. Heck, there were even cream-colored Venetian blinds over the windows to the hallway. Just an ordinary conference room. He was the only one there.

It was strange that he wanted to meet here, Cyrus thought as he sat in one of the seats. One would think that someone with such a classy image would arrange meetings in a comfortable setting. Or at least one not so generic.

"Are we ready to begin?" Giovanni asked from the chair opposite the one Cyrus had sit in.

He suppressed as much surprise as he could. "Why do you have to do that?"

"In business, time is money and I do not like wasting either. Would you care for some breakfast? I'm afraid that all I have at the moment is orange juice and bagels, but they're both top quality."

A pitcher of orange juice, two clear glasses, and a basket of bagels with small tubs of cream cheese were suddenly on Cyrus' left. It violated his scientific sense. "How did you manage that? The teleporting and all this?"

Giovanni poured himself some juice. "You'd be amazed at what a little genetic modification, technology, and legerdemain can do. Or perhaps not; you're quite good with technology yourself. But not so good with money, I'm afraid."

Feeling suspicious, Cyrus ignored the breakfast items. "It wasn't my fault. Our group is experiencing some difficulty right now. We'll break out of it and then we can pay you."

"Wasn't your fault, is that right?" His voice had a tone of false kindness that was unnerving. "Let's review the facts, shall we?"

"This had better not be a waste of my time. I have everlasting ideological goals which are far more important to achieve than your earthly and temporary goals."

"So I have heard, but if your everlasting goals do not have an earthly foundation, you will never reach the heavens. You have said this yourself, I believe, at some of your recruitment meetings."

That was usually when he was convincing recruits to turn over all of their life savings over to Team Galactic, for such things would not matter when their new world came about. Cyrus never did like dealing with Giovanni, but there was always the evil of needing money.

The businessman snapped his fingers, bringing up a projection of legal documents onto the blank wall. "You came to me and applied for a loan for your scientific research and for a franchise license on the casino. As I was impressed by your exceptional leadership qualities, I agreed to both transactions, worth a trifling six million dollars total, plus whatever interest might accrue. Both endeavors were ultimately failures."

"They were not failures. Temporary setbacks are all that adds up to."

"The casino was particularly bad," Giovanni went on. "The prize exchange was too high and the odds were poor."

"The odds are supposed to be poor."

"Yes, the house is always the winner, but you must give the customer the illusion of winning. They must believe that they can attain that which they want. With your exchange system, people were turned away because it seemed impractical to spend all the time needed to get the best TMs. And those that did play got discouraged at those high goals and would stop. In that situation, the house loses." He scratched his nose. "Plus, your followers were never in there because you had already appropriated all money from them. Would you believe that I earn a fair profit off paying my followers because nearly all of them are gambling addicts?"

"Most of your followers are nothing but common thieves and murderers," Cyrus pointed out.

"True. Unlike you, who managed to convince otherwise sane and healthy adults to destroy their lives for a cause they hardly understand. It's a gift you have which I don't, I'll freely admit."

"It's because you have no cause to follow and your only goal is money. Such thinking leaves you with tunnel vision, unable to comprehend the true ways of the world."

"Perhaps, and yet you need money for your cause. That is why you first contacted me. As for that loan, the project you completed with it was certainly intriguing. Using the power of Pokemon evolution to make a bomb? Nice, and yet it failed to kill anything. I suppose if one wished to do widespread property demolition, it would be useful, but it inspires no fear nor any respect. And then draining the power of three legendary Pokemon in order to create a device to control a more powerful one? It seems like a sound idea, except that someone found out where you held the three captives and you utterly failed to control the one you summoned."

"It was those meddling kids."

"Ah yes, the problem of children with Pokemon. I've encountered such obstacles before."

"I don't see how a mere child can control Pokemon that could crush him to death in seconds. It's irrational."

Giovanni raised an eyebrow. "Irrational, you say? I say that it is completely reasonable."

Cyrus crossed his arms over his chest. "And how is that?"

"Parental instinct."

"Instinct." He sounded skeptical. "It's instinctive for a Pokemon to become more powerful when under the command of a child?"

He nodded. "Correct."

"How is that reasonable?"

"It's simple, really. Pokemon are instructed by primal instinct to guard young ones that cannot protect themselves. This has evolved so that parents protect their offspring. Cross-breeding is widespread, even in the wild. Some species survive solely by cross-breeding, like the Chansey. Thus, most non-predatory Pokemon will protect a young being of any specie. When it comes to predators, they will protect those that they do not consider prey, sometimes only those that they know."

"And how does this apply to humans?"

"No Pokemon that we are aware of preys on humans actively. Thus, when any adult Pokemon comes across a human child, they see him or her as an immature being, and thus they are driven by instinct. This instinct is stronger when the child connects with the Pokemon in an early stage. So yes, that is why you can have a ten year old lead his or her Pokemon straight into your headquarters and defeat everyone inside."

"I suppose that is true."

"That's why I'm pressuring politicians to enact a law to restrict Pokemon training to a certain age, like sixteen. Teenagers would not be as much trouble as ten year olds, for they are more concerned about fighting and dating each other than attempting to take on an entire organization of adults."

"That would be one less thorn in the side."

"You still need to repay your loan and reimburse my organization for the downfall of your franchise. If not, I will be forced to take compensation in the form of all rights to the technology that Galactic has created and even the organization itself if the technology does not recoup the debt."

So distraction wasn't working here. Cyrus decided to try a different tactic. "I know my financial side is weak, but everything else about Galactic is strong. That's why I'm going to offer you the chance to become a full partner of our group."

The gleam in his eye seemed interested. "You're looking for a partner?"

"I have very large plans ahead, but I fear that Galactic doesn't have the numbers it needs to follow through this time. Here." He picked up his suitcase and put it on the table. Opening it, he pulled out a file with glossy advertisements and long articles. "Due to the unfortunate incidents in Sinnoh, I will have to restructure the exterior of my group anyhow, but it will all be for the best. I have a grand plan that will cross this tired old world in time."

"Still ambitious," Giovanni noted, looking over a list of places, people, and Pokemon.

Cyrus took a pen and pointed out various key points. "There are so many legends in the world and many of them contradict each other, but we can obtain some truths from them. Most Pokemon do not come up to the full potential of their kind. Even the strongest in a particular type will lack something another member has. But if all these dots can be connected into one picture, and if that picture can be translated into real power, then that force would be greater than any being."

"The word 'if' is not good for business."

"Then let me cut it down to size. I've got many of the dots connected already, as you can see here." He then went through his theory in fine detail, making sure to hold onto Giovanni's attention. It was simple enough; one could convince anyone of anything provided one knew how to present it. Cyrus had made an art of persuasive speaking and of persuasive confusion. Sometimes it was best if the subject didn't understand what they were agreeing to.

"There are many things that need to be done here, many things that most people would balk at," Giovanni stated. "But you're right. Giving them only enough information to perform their missions will get them all to cooperate, even more so when you train them as suggested here."

"Exactly. But this is a complex system and all parts need to operate smoothly. Unfortunately, I do not know how to work finances to help this machinery along. However, you excel at shifting money and getting investments. I believe that if we work together, we can bring this grand dream to life." He brought his papers back together and put them in the folder, then hit him with the clincher. "It is something like what you were trying to achieve years ago in Cinnabar, isn't it?"

"Yes, this is familiar, and yet more advanced than I realized. This could work out."

"So will you work with me?"

"I believe we have ourselves a deal." The two shook hands.

After some pleasant flattery to seal up the agreement, Cyrus excused himself and left. "Foolish old man," he mumbled after he shut the door. "Once I have my new world, you won't matter. I'll be turning you into a Wurmple."

Back in the conference room, Giovanni chucked. "A Wurmple, is it? Poor youth. The house always wins, you must remember that." He teleported to outside his office, where his secretary worked.

She handed over a folder. "Sir, here's the papers you asked me to copy."

"Thank you." While Cyrus was distracted with his presentation, Giovanni had slipped out the one folder he wasn't using and sent it to her. The original was back in the suitcase, but he now had the information that he wasn't supposed see. He opened it up and skimmed over the first page. "Deoxys…"

* * *

 

"Hey Deoxys," Mewtwo called.

He came out of the TV room. _"Hi Mewtwo! Do you feel better now?"_

" _Mostly. Still hazy, though. I was wondering where you kept the marbles for your track."_

" _They're in my room. I was going to run one all the way to the lowest levels from that tower, but I ran out of track."_

" _Ah. I've done something to it, if you don't mind. Get a marble and meet me at the top."_

" _Okay!"_ He shifted to Speed forme and went to his bedroom, picked out a silver marble, then rushed up to the tower where his track started. _"Did you find more tracks?"_

" _Not exactly."_

" _But you can't run it without tracks."_

" _Can you? May I see that?"_

" _Sure."_ He handed over the marble.

" _Watch this."_ Mewtwo placed the marble in the track and set it running.

Following the track Deoxys had placed, the marble raced down the spiral stairs. At the first landing, it went into a series of loops, then into a series of S-turns all the way across the hall. When it entered the second tower, it rushed down another set of stairs, then into the next hallway where it had to pass a spiral funnel, a track staircase with holes, and set of gears that made a flag spin. When it entered the doorway to the tower it started in, it hit the end catching bin that was the last piece Deoxys had.

But now there was a deep scoop at the end of the bin. When the marble fell into the scoop, it flipped up and tossed it into a wide plastic tube, cut in half. The marble went down the incline onto a spring. As the small motor detected the weight, it tensed up the spring, then shot it into the air. This hit a handmade device with two funnels, a flexible tube, and a small vacuum pump. The pump drew in the marble, then shot it out to another funnel-vacuum device, which shot it to a third, and a fourth, and a fifth which tossed it up into a fan-shaped slope. The marble traveled down the slope and was guided back to the start of the track, where it went right back down the stairs all over again.

" _That's good, I calculated the weight and functions properly,"_ Mewtwo said.

Deoxys twitched his twin-whips. _"Oh my gosh, now it'll go on forever!"_ He hugged him tightly. _"Thank you so much, Mewtwo!"_ Then he rushed back down the stairs to follow the marble again.

Once he was out of sight, Mewtwo smiled. _"You're welcome, Deoxys."_

* * *

 

_A/N: Caught back up to the opening now! At this point, Deoxys would be around level 17, given that most of his forms learn Teleport then. Legendaries have awesome powers… but they often start with incredibly weak movepools like Leer-Wrap. Mewtwo starts off a bit better, with Confusion-Disable at level 1._

_But yes, I have Mewtwo starting of as a pure Mew clone at first. I follow the games more than the anime because, well, I've never seen the Pokemon anime aside from the first movie. And I saw that only once, when it came out in theaters; me and some college friends went and did a MST3K on it for fun. This story follows its own mythology._


	7. To Kidnap a Pop Princess

Bang!

Deoxys paused in the hallway. The noise had come from Mewtwo's lab area. Had something gone wrong? Hoping it wasn't that, he entered the lab and searched. "Mewtwo?"

"Haven't I told you to knock before coming in?" he responded, from the left.

"Sorry, I just heard something and…"

Bang!

"Are you okay?" Deoxys asked, coming into another room. It was long and, for the most part, empty. A gun was clamped into an odd mechanism in front of him. At the other end of the room, Mewtwo was standing to the side.

"Stay over there," he warned. "I'm doing some training on my own."

"Oh." He looked over the contraption. "Shooting a gun by telekinesis?"

"No. Stopping the bullet."

He curled his whip around. "Oh, that sounds hard. Bullets go really fast and can knock people off buildings, and blow up cars."

Mewtwo winced, then shook his head. "Your TV shows exaggerate it. Still, guns are very dangerous. They unbalance the powers of the world, even if you don't consider the other technologies of mankind."

Bang!

Reacting so fast that Deoxys couldn't follow it, Mewtwo grasped the bullet with his mental powers. There was a shimmer in the air as his mind fought the kinetic motion of the bullet. It hung in midair twelve feet from the gun for a moment. Once it dissipated, the bullet dropped to the ground.

"I can handle any power that any Pokemon has," Mewtwo stated. "If I get damaged, I can just Recover it away. But guns are another story. If I get hit by a bullet, I'm out of commission for at least one day. Some legendary Pokemon have existed for hundreds or thousands of years. But even they could get killed by a gun."

"Are you making a new skill to stop bullets?"

"That would be nice, but just a pipe dream for now. I'm..." the gun fired, causing him to pause for a second to catch the bullet. It went thirteen feet this time. "I'm seeing how much force is required to stop them. It's taken me several years to get to this point." Mewtwo frowned. "Still not good enough."

"You're stopping it. That's good."

"Yes, but I know it's going to fire. I tried setting it up to a RNG to fire without pattern, but even that I can predict somewhat. I need to be able to block unexpected shots." He raised his left arm and flicked it. The gun then fired twice in succession. Both bullets stopped ten feet from the gun before dropping. "While you're in here, let's talk about our next plan."

Deoxys nodded and followed him into the other room. "What is it?"

Mewtwo sat on a stool, then held up a silver-colored CD. "I've got something I want you to listen to."

He floated over and put his hand on the table. "What's on it?"

"Some classical music. A lot better than that pop junk you listen to." He placed it into a radio and pressed play.

A quartet of strings began to play. After a minute of it, Deoxys commented, "It's kinda slow, isn't it?"

"That's how it is, the sounds of a soul reminiscing over hard times and past sorrows."

"Who's going to listen to that?"

"Mostly the older generation, the educated." He tapped his fingers and looked at the radio. "What're you thinking about?"

"Um... I'm kinda thirsty, actually. Do we have any soda?"

"And?"

Deoxys concentrated. "And, um... I don't really get this music?"

Mewtwo shut the radio off. "All I'm thinking about is having a soda too. This could be a problem."

"Do we need to go shopping?"

"No." He rested his head on his hands. "There was a subliminal message on this tape, some words underneath the music that encourage you to do things, like want a soda. However, there were two other messages: go onto the castle roof and think about Pidgies."

"Well now I'm thinking about Pidgies on the roof."

He summoned a notebook and began writing. "So a single playthrough will not work. I need a medium that people will listen to over and over again. That means that using pop music, as banal as it is, would be the best plan."

Deoxys thought, then twirled his whip arm. "Oh, I heard on TV today that Glitter Glameow is working in studio on a new album! All of her songs go to number one in a matter of days. That means everybody would hear your message about soda and Pidgies."

"True. She could be useful in this circumstance." He jotted down some more notes. "Also, must buy stock in soda companies before putting this plan into action."

* * *

 

They arrived at the studio in the evening. The building wasn't as busy, but their target was here. At the entrance, a guard stopped them. "Get back to your Trainers, Pokemon."

Mewtwo tapped the man's forehead with his fingers. "We are going in and you won't recall anything about it."

"Uh... go in." He hit the button that let them in past the anti-teleporting shield.

"Thanks," Deoxys said as they went in. " _Hey, why don't you just do that to take over?"_

" _It only works on weak minds and I have to have the person pretty much alone. If other people saw me, they'd panic or try to free the one I brainwashed. That's why I need this mass effort."_

" _Okay."_

" _Now tell me what your job is here."_

" _Use my harmless aura to look around the building and see if anyone else would notice us joining Glitter's studio staff."_

" _Good. Don't call attention to yourself."_

* * *

 

Glitter Glameow was a pretty woman. No matter what the rumors were about her makeup routines, she didn't have to do much to look young and sweet. She had candy pink hair that, if she had her way, would be in a simple braid down to her waist. She had deep blue eyes that appeared pure and ageless. With a petite and modest body, some of her advisers had tried to convince her to get plastic surgery to enhance her allure. But no matter what they said, she drew the line there.

Sometimes those advisers got after her for choosing a wardrobe that was old-fashioned and un-trendy. She did go along with them on that and got used to tight blue jeans and modern tops. Today, it was a purple t-shirt with a Glameow on front and pale purple pawprints trailing around. While today was just a recording session, they had warned her to not turn slobby in case of paparazzi.

Not that she cared much about those photographers. Glitter had a knack for avoiding attention when she didn't want it. She had several such quirks that made her staff wonder if she had latent psychic abilities.

"I swear, it's like she knows what I want to do and deflects me before I can even start," a young male star told Glitter's manager. "And no matter how much I plan to surprise her with a date, once I'm with her, I lose my nerve and do something more friendly. It's like she's untouchable."

The manager sighed. "I know; I've heard all about this before. But we agreed that it would give you both good publicity if your fans thought you were dating. It would make the upcoming tour more exciting."

He shook his head. "Sorry, I just can't do this. It's so frustrating that I feel like tearing my hair out sometimes. But I can't be her boyfriend unless she wants me to be. If I can't even ask her, it's pointless."

"This is a problem. I haven't even been able to talk to her about it. Like you said, she seems to deflect the conversation before it even starts."

The console beeped, letting them know that Glitter had opened up the two-way radio. "How was that, boss?"

"Good, good. Give a few more so we can get good material for edits."

She stuck her tongue out at him from the other side of the glass. "I bet you weren't even listening. I don't like this song much. It's too risque."

"It's normal for current hit songs."

"Too risque. I'm sure I could alter it, given some time."

"You could, but..."

"Great! Can we work on the Sanctuary song now?"

"Why are you so into those old songs? They're nice, but new is best."

"Not always." She blinked, then looked off at another wall. After a moment, she laughed and took off her headphones. "May I take a break now? I want to get some juice."

"You said you were okay when I asked you if you wanted a break."

By then, she was through the recording booth's door. "But that was ten minutes ago. It'll be okay." She smiled at him.

The manager felt a fleeting moment of calm when she did so. The last thing he wanted was for this young star to get exhausted and lose her voice. So if she wanted a break now, "Okay. Be back in ten."

She giggled. "I'll try." She then whistled as she skipped down the hall.

"That was weird," the other star said. "You'd think that she was going off to meet somebody she loves."

"I hope she isn't trying to date behind my back."

* * *

 

Hiding in a darkened office, Mewtwo waited. He was going to go directly to the recording studio, but then the starlet came his way on her own. She was alone. Simple enough then: secure her under hypnosis, then subdue the crew from calling the police immediately. With her as leverage, the rest shouldn't be a problem.

She came into the break room. She maintained that sweet innocent look even now, so she shouldn't be too hard to keep captive. Or even to convince her to participate in the subliminal project willingly. Was she truly that naive? He observed her for a moment.

Pausing in front of a vending machine, Glitter considered her options. Something about her bothered Mewtwo. Her mind seemed deft and agile, hardly what he would expect from a pop star. Her thoughts dodged his without any conscious effort. It took psychic skills to read thoughts, but pure mastery to manage telepathic dodging. And without thinking... wait. Her aura seemed all too familiar.

She picked out some change and placed it into the machine. "Hi Mewtwo! Long time no see."

He groaned. There was no escaping now. "What are you doing here?"

Glitter pulled out the bottle of strawberry and kiwi juice, then turned right to where he was hiding. She smiled happily. "Singing, what else? Now what are you doing here?"

He stepped into the doorway and leaned on it. "That's none of your business."

"Are you sure? Didn't you come to see me?" She smiled wider, pleased with herself.

"I came to find Glitter Glameow," he admitted with a touch of annoyance. "I didn't expect to find you in her place."

"I am Glitter Glameow."

Mewtwo frowned. "What for? You look utterly ridiculous."

She took her braid and clutched it. "Most people think I'm cute."

"******* it! You're Mew, for goodness sakes, one of the oldest beings of the universe! What are you doing as some sleazy pop star?"

After a white haze, the pink haired human was no longer there. Instead, there was a small pink Pokemon, barely one foot long from nose to tail tip. She had a strange mixture of looking too young for life while having eyes that seemed too old for the universe. The juice bottle hung in the air near her. "Well my manager would like me to be a little more sleazy. Or a lot more, depending on when you ask."

"You still aren't answering the question."

"I know you won't." After a brief stare-off, she went on. "I just wanted to do something different. When you get to be my age, you have to start doing crazy stuff to keep from going insane. And it's loads of fun."

"I still say it's ridiculous. Why would you lower yourself to imitating humans, adding onto the fluff they call culture? And how do you keep people from figuring out who you are? You're way more powerful than they are."

"I can disguise my power to go unnoticed. Unlike you; your psychic presence is as obvious as a Skarmory in a flock of Spearows. But I could teach you how to go unnoticed. It might take a while, but it'll help."

"I have more important matters at hand."

She seemed honestly disappointed, but he knew she had to be faking it. "Mewtwo... I just want to help you. And you need to quiet down for a while. I heard about the murdered warehouse staff, among other incidents. You're getting yourself into deep trouble and the others won't be so forgiving."

Clenching his fist, he growled at her. "Why do you care now? When I could have used your help, you weren't there. But I made it through on my own, so I certainly don't need any help now!"

"But that was out of my control," she replied weakly, at a loss for words.

"Stop trying to make excuses. You're not going to make me do what you want."

One of the doors opened, letting Deoxys in the break room. "Oh hey, it's really quiet around here... huh? Who's this?"

She looked to the mutant, twirling her tail curiously. "Yes, who is this? I'm Mew, his mother."

Before Mewtwo could snap at her, Deoxys beamed and replied, "Really? That's neat. I'm Deoxys and he's my mo... I mean, my father."

Mew broke into a peal of laughter. "His child? Oh Mewtwo, what have you been up to?"

"Don't get any funny ideas," he said, trying to appear more furious than embarrassed. "He's adopted. I helped him before he needed it."

"Well that's sweet of you. Unexpected, yeah, but still."

"Just forget it. Come on Deoxys, let's go home."

"But what about your Pidgey message?"

"Forget it." He took Deoxys' shoulder and teleported them away.

When they appeared back in the castle, Deoxys tapped Mewtwo. "But she was your mother."

"It doesn't mean anything!" He teleported off, fuming.

It didn't mean a thing.

* * *

 

Not bothering to change back into her disguise, Mew summoned out her cell phone and mentally input her manager's number. "Hey, something came up. I'm taking the rest of the day off."

"Glitter, we still have an hour left of recording time and..."

She frowned. She didn't like doing this, but sometimes it was necessary. Forcing a telepathic order, she repeated, "I'm taking the day off."

"You can take the day off," he echoed. "Do you need an escort home?"

"No, I'll be fine." She cut off the call and sent the phone away.

She should have known better. When she'd sensed that Mewtwo was looking for her, she'd felt a glimmer of hope. Maybe he'd finally decided to open up... but no. It was some mistaken plot of his and he still wanted nothing to do with her. Her one true child wanted nothing to do with her.

Leaving the building, she considered where she could go to be alone. As Glitter, she had a gorgeous country home. It had a swimming pool, ten acres of flowering fields, and enough room to house a small army. That didn't seem appealing now. She knew of a lot of hidden sanctuaries in the world. But which one?

Before she could decide, a shifting of the air told her that she wasn't alone. In the concrete alley by the recording studio, three other legends appeared. Entei, Raikou, and Suicune. The fire beast pawed his nose. "Oh, it's Mew."

She knew exactly what they were up to, but disguised it with a smile. "Hey guys! What's going on?"

"We're not having much luck on this search," Raikou answered.

"It doesn't help that you smell like him," Suicune added. "Have you seen Mewtwo?"

"Not recently."

"You are telling the truth, right?" Raikou asked sternly.

Mew wasn't able to disguise an angry twitch to her tail, so worked that into her response. "I don't agree with the council's decision. But I'm not going to help you or him in this."

"He's too dangerous and you know it," Suicune argued. "He's a harbinger of war and imbalance, so we must eliminate him."

"He's not here. Just leave me alone. I'm in a bad mood today."

"Very well. Let's go." The three beasts were gone as quickly as they had come.

After holding still for three minutes, Mew sighed. _"None of you realize how much this hurts me. Still, Deoxys... have you awakened his heart?"_

* * *

 

Extra: A Word from our Stars

"We felt that some of our loyal readers might become worried upon reading this chapter," Mewtwo stated calmly. "So I've come here to reassure you that there are no subliminal messages within this story. If you get the idea that you humans are unworthy and ought to give yourself up to the order of Pokemon, then that's your own idea. A good one, but your own."

"Um, Mewtwo," Deoxys queried, "What about that…?"

"Shh!"


	8. The Johto Executioners

On a list of unreasonable things in the world, Agate Village had to be included. It was located in Orre, one of the most barren regions in existence. Mile after mile, there was nothing but scraggy desert, brown rocks, and sun-hardy vegetation. The towns of Orre scrounged out a living by raw minerals and treasured anything that produced water. And then there was Agate, a lavish and compact forest that was constantly thriving in green. Most curious of all, the greenest vegetation grew in a perfect circle. It left a clear town limit between the green and the brown.

Deoxys floated back and forth over this line. _"Well on one side, I sense a great power. On the other side, nothing. It's ordinary."_

Mewtwo nodded. _"That's right. The power you sense is that of Celebi. This is one of her points of access."_

" _Access? Like a computer?"_

" _No. Celebi is a time traveler. I can't figure out when she is supposed to be from, but she shows up at many points in history. When she's around, she doesn't have a complete sense of history and is vague about the future."_

" _Oh. So she won't answer questions about the future, like how you'll take over the world?"_

He smirked. _"She wouldn't. She might even try to alter things if I make direct contact with her. But to be able to travel through time and shift how things occur... I could do great things with that power."_

Deoxys stopped on Celebi's side. _"Right, you could stop bad things before they happen. But how are you gonna do that?"_

" _If I can't work directly with her, I'll have to work indirectly."_ He looked out to the desert, towards a sparkling point of light. _"That light is from Realgam Tower. Reportedly, they're currently showing off a Time Flute on the upper floors."_

" _Is that another Key Item?"_

" _Yes, it summons Celebi from whenever she is to one of her access points. Since it must reach her from across all time, I know it will have some hint about the power of time control. But the Tower will be a tough place to break into. I'll do it alone."_

" _What can I do?"_

He pointed back towards Agate. " _Notice the shape of this place? In the center, there is a monument called Relic Stone. I want you to study it. It may also have clues to time control; however, I don't think I should approach it and cause her alarm. You might be able to. But be careful if she appears. We can't know what she knows about us."_

" _All right. I'll do my best."_

* * *

 

Raelgam Tower was a crazy place to infiltrate. There was one entrance, but a maze of hallways behind it. So long as a visitor didn't wind up at one of the dozen or so dead ends, he or she would come upon the lobby. Then there was a single elevator leading to a mid-level hotel, which had twin elevators to the stadium at the very top. Mewtwo would have simply teleported to the top, but it had the standard safety shields, including teleport lock.

According to his sources, the Time Flute was being kept in the Stadium. Perhaps they meant to give it away as a prize. It was thoughtless, in the ways of humans. Time Flutes were rare, not because of low production, but because they were fragile within Celebi's shrines. They tended to be good for one summoning, then disintegrate. Outside her access points, the flutes were more or less regular instruments.

Hopefully, the time control power wasn't active only in the access points. If he had to take one in there, that would risk Celebi's interference. Mewtwo had a feeling that she'd be a nag and pest just like Mew.

Mewtwo teleported along the lavish halls outside the stadium field. Whoever had built this had been obnoxious and pretentious. Expensive white marble, gold trim, tons of glass, all to host violent and powerful battles. Not to mention the crazy entrance maze, the fanciful design, and the abundance of water in a desert region. And to think that in the shadow of this expensive building lay a rough and tumble slum town... the world would be in much better shape after he took over.

There was another energy field. All the way up here, he had encountered various security measures. Mewtwo was able to trick or fool them all, and he passed this invisible shield with a quick psychic pulse. It caused the field to weaken, but not break. In this manner, he was able to pass through while keeping the security measure intact. Psychic powers really were amazing, and he had managed to bypass all of the security with his.

As he came out into the stadium itself, he felt a moment of doubt. His powers had bypassed all of the security measures with little difficulty. And with the level of protection placed on this facility, there should have been something to wall a Psychic. He could have still passed it. Yet, the doubt grew and he became cautious.

The Time Flute itself was out here, in a locked glass case. Resting on a white satin pillow, it was a thing of beauty. The Flute appeared like a green lily with its stem, but no leaves. Although metallic, an aura of Psychic power permeated it. And finally, here was something to cause problems to a Psychic: a gem from a Sableye lay underneath the pillow, giving off the Dark resistance to his power in order to keep the flute safe.

The last line of defense, a Sableye gem. Mewtwo could work around it. It would take time, effort, and a little pain in order to remove the Flute from the display case. But he could...

A shield flared up over the entire Stadium. It was tightly woven from three powers: Fire, Water, and Lightning. As the powers were related, so were the three who had combined efforts to raise that shield. Unable to teleport out, Mewtwo teleported around to face the trio: Entei, Suicune, and Raikou.

"You three are protecting this place?" Mewtwo asked brazenly. "One would think that after letting yourselves be enslaved and corrupted, you'd want to keep as far away as possible."

"Shut up," Raikou snapped.

Some years ago, the three had been captured by the builder of Raelgam Tower, then driven to madness by becoming Shadow Pokemon. They had to be extremely weak to let it happen. And looking at them now, Mewtwo knew that he had pegged them exactly. All three were only level 40. Although far younger then this trio, Deoxys was already at level 41.

"We couldn't care less whether this Tower thrives or collapses," Suicune said. "We came here as the ideal place to trap you."

"Trap me?" He smirked at them, amused by this bold announcement. He could sweep the floor with them, no problem.

"You are too dangerous and too powerful," Entei continued. "As you are not one of the thousand, your fate is to be executed."

"What do you mean by that? You have no right to decide my fate; no one does save myself."

"It is unfortunate for Mew," Suicune said.

"But it has been decided. Your story ends now."

Mewtwo clutched his fist, focusing his mind and power. Might as well make an example of them so the other legendary Pokemon didn't interfere. "I'd like to see you stop me."

The three beasts braced themselves as one, then howled. As they did, Mewtwo felt a seal break. It puzzled him until he looked them in the eyes. They had turned wild and... they were far more powerful than before. They each had a level of 557.

557? It didn't seem possible that they could hide such power. And yet, Mew, one of the oldest beings in the universe, could disguise herself as an ordinary human.

They had changed too. The stream of smoke acting as Entei's mane now sported flecks of lava. Suicune's mane had changed from flowing violet hair to frothing deep blue water. And Entei's jolt-like whiskers had turned into true sparks of electricity, active and bright.

"We would imbalance the powers of the world if we came out like this every time," Suicune explained before he could say anything more.

"You imbalance the powers and show no wish to restrain yourself from doing so," Entei added.

Raikou pawed at the ground. "Responsibility like this is only given to the thousand. As you are not one of us, you must be destroyed in order to restore balance. This is the Judgment of the council."

And they attacked as one, not three.

Mewtwo barely teleported out of the way as a wave of energy was sent his way. It was a combined effort as flawless as the shield around the stadium. The energy hit the shield, which fed back into the powers of the three. A cunning system; Mewtwo felt momentarily jealous of it before he had to move out of the way of a fountain of lava that exploded from underneath where he had been. Twin spears of ice and lightning nearly pinned him as he did.

Without their shield, they would likely destroy Raelgam Tower with their current powers. Then why didn't they do so in revenge for being turned into Shadow Pokemon? Mewtwo used his irritation at that injustice to use one of his most potent skills. Some Pokemon were able to summon something like a falling star using Meteor Mash. He increased this by ten times when using Meteor Swarm.

Raikou and Entei dodged the meteors, something even he hadn't been able to do. Suicune got sideswiped by one, but acted as if it was only a scratch. In that case, he might want to try something more widespread. Earthquake would be super-effective against two of the three, and that was good enough for Mewtwo.

Right as his power struck the ground, Suicune reared up and summoned a pair of water cushions for her brothers. These cushions absorbed the Earthquake damage, leaving Entei and Raikou free to bum rush him with Stomp and Body Slam. Mewtwo quickly activated Counter, but found himself paralyzed and badly damaged. The two beasts shrugged off his Counter damage like he had shrugged off a Rattata's Bite.

But it did cause a waver in their shield. Mewtwo took advantage of that to teleport straight up, the only way he could also bypass Realgam's anti-teleport shield. Once up there, he sent himself to Pyrite Town in the west. As much as he didn't like having to run away, he had to admit that he was outclassed.

He was outclassed by the legendary Johto beasts.

* * *

 

If Deoxys hadn't seen the desert earlier, he would have thought that he was in the middle of the jungle. The clearing where the Relic Stone lay was green, cool, and peaceful. A babbling pool spilled over to a stream, which flowed around Agate Village only to feed back into itself. The trees rustled their leaves, perfectly healthy. And the Relic Stone itself was the calmest thing he had ever seen.

It should have just been a hunk of rock, but it did indeed hold an aura of calm and peace. It was as tall as himself, almost black with crystalline sparkles covering it densely. While looking at it, Deoxys found himself thinking over happy times in his life. Odd. This stone had nothing to do with his past, only his present. But it seemed to know his past, perhaps his future as well.

As he wondered what Mewtwo wanted him to look for, he felt a presence in the trees. Another Pokemon. He turned as it came out of hiding. It was small, like Mew had been, green with oval white wings. She flew over to the Relic Stone and landed on it. "Hi Deoxys."

Nervous at the stranger's greeting him as someone familiar, he replied, "Um, hi."

"Oh, is this our first meeting? Sorry. I'm Celebi."

"Okay."

She tilted her head at him. "When is this, by the way?"

"It's June..."

She shook her head. "No, dates don't help me. What I see as history changes constantly. What you see as history is constant. So what has happened to mark when this is?"

"Hmm... Glitter Glameow is about to release her third album."

"Oh really? That was a good one, I think. So that means..." she closed her eyes. "Do you know your title?"

"My title?"

"I see." She looked up at him. "Do you know about the thousand?"

"No, but I've heard someone say that I might be one."

"I've got a lot of explaining to do then." She leaned back, sliding a little down the angled surface. "It is said that at the beginning of time, Arceus created the universe with his thousand hands. The hands are the thousand immortal Pokemon who guide and watch over the world. We make up a council that decides how to keep peace intact, among other things. Most sleep, but a few are always alert. Each of the thousand hands, and thus each member of the council, has a title that assigns their duties. Arceus assigns those titles, generally through his Plates."

"Plates? Like dishes?"

She chuckled. "No, Plates like flat minerals used to contain certain powers. A lot of this is mysterious, even to us. Especially to me, since I live independent of time and thus can't rely on memory or history." She shrugged. "But that is what I am. The Watcher of Time, who brings out warm memories to soften any heart."

Although Mewtwo had said to be cautious of her, it seemed like good information. Better than what he could have come up with just looking at the rock. "How do I find those Plates?"

"There's sixteen out there, and a few apparently have functional copies. So it shouldn't be that hard. They're mostly kept around Sinnoh. You should find one and ask about your title. It'll help a lot."

"I see. Thank you."

"No problem." She flew up off the Relic Stone. "Sorry, but time moves differently for me. I must leave this point. Goodbye Deoxys; we will meet again."

"Goodbye Celebi."

She nodded, then vanished in a green light.

* * *

 

Mewtwo landed in an alleyway of Pyrite. Dingy metal buildings surrounded him, marked by garish neon lights. A Kirlia was sitting on a crumbling concrete porch. _"What're you running from?"_

" _Shut up,"_ he snapped. He considered attacking the Kirlia to work out his frustration, but something about him... no, her, got his curiosity running. _"What are you up to, girl?"_

Her eyes widened, then went into a furious slant. _"Don't you dare tell anyone!"_

" _Really? And what are you going to do about it?"_

Out of nowhere, she summoned a blue-handled rapier and snarled. _"Don't test my patience. I'm not as nice as my peers."_

He dismissed her with a wave of his hand. " _Doesn't matter to me. I'm Mewtwo."_

The Kirlia lowered her rapier. " _What, the Mewtwo? The one punishing the humans?"_

He smiled, impressed that she knew. _"Right.'_

She put her weapon away. _"You're doing an awful slow job of it."_

" _Like you could do any better than me. Humans are devious and tricky."_

" _I've tried. My name is Michael."_

Mewtwo crossed his arms over his chest. _"Michael, huh? You're trying awful hard to be a male."_

She hopped up. " _It's my curse, living life as a female. Come on; you ought to come down to the pub and meet some folks."_

" _The pub?"_

" _It's a good place, only for Pokemon. We talk about what we can do about the humans' power. Won't you come, at least this once?"_

It would be a distraction from earlier events. _"Fine."_

" _Great. Just don't address me as a girl."_ She led the way.

The pub itself wasn't in Pyrite. It was in the Under, a city underneath a city. There was a regular pub for humans upstairs, but in the back, there was an entrance to the basement where the Pokemon were gathering. And not just any Pokemon. These all seemed to be oddballs and misfits.

At the pool table in back, a Skarmory that had unfortunately been painted hot pink was playing a round with a female Machoke. A round of dominos was being played by an Arbok with white tattoos, a Probopass, a Porygon-Z, and a male Delcatty. Even if an ordinary person couldn't tell what was odd, like the Probopass and the Porygon-Z, Mewtwo knew they weren't normal.

Michael brought him up to the bar to sit by a Lopunny. He was smoking a cigar that smell faintly of chicory. " _Hey there Michael. Who'd you drag in this time?"_

" _Hi Oskar. This is Mewtwo. He just appeared up in Pyrite."_

" _Yeah, I was randomly teleporting around,"_ Mewtwo said sarcastically.

Oskar smirked. " _Well we won't question what anyone's been up to unless they want to tell. Come on; let's have a drink and talk."_

* * *

 

The Pokemon of the dive bar were philosophically dedicated to overtaking the humans, Mewtwo reflected after he'd listened to them for two hours. But they were small time. They managed to destroy several shipments of Pokeballs and harass a handful of Trainers. But at their pace, world-changing action would not occur for decades. He really didn't want to wait that long.

The problem now was... what in the world was he doing?

He, Michael, and Oskar were in the human hospital of the Under. His head was buzzing, as it always did after he used a concentrated Recover in order to come out of a drunken state. The Lopunny was drunk and uncertain of what to do with some needles and chemical bottles on the table beside him. Michael was sleeping under a combination of being very drunk and under Hypnosis. She was on the hospital bed.

What had happened? He paused a minute to review the evening at the bar.

" _You really ought to try doing something bigger,"_ he restated. He was feeling somewhat drunk, to the point where he couldn't tell how much his psychic powers were being muddled. But it had done its job; the battle with the Johto beasts had completely slipped his mind.

" _They'll pound us and put us down,"_ Oskar replied. _"You could fight 'em off, but most of us, nah."_

" _If I were a Gallade, I could fight 'em off,"_ Michael said. She had gotten drunk faster than the rest, but still had the Octillery bartender refill her glass.

As her head was on the bar, Mewtwo quietly said, " _You know about...?"_

Oskar nodded. " _Yup, although we humor her. It's unfortunate."_

With that explained, Mewtwo spoke up again. _"You could probably do a number on them as a Gardevoir."_

" _No!"_ she said, slamming her fist into the bar. _"I want to be a Gallade. It's so unfair. Why'd it only have to be for males?"_

" _It might be something that can only be activated on a Y chromosome."_

" _So unfair,"_ she repeated. _"I've trained myself in swordplay, I've beefed up my physical side, I even went and tracked down a Shiny Stone and keep it on me all the time. But nothing works! I'm level 99 and I keep trying to turn into a stupid Gardevoir. I hate it."_

" _Well technically..."_

" _It ain't working."_ She sobbed.

Mewto considered the puzzle. Whatever she thought, it probably had a purely scientific answer. And it could be... _"It might also be something that's affected by testosterone. If you get shot up with enough chemicals to rebalance your system so testosterone is greater than estrogen, it might be enough to fool your genes into activating the Gallade form."_

She looked up, her eyes puffy. _"You think so?"_

He shrugged. _"It's worth a shot, to see if it works. Science is never advanced without experimentation."_

" _So what if I end up evolving towards Gardevoir again? What then?"_

" _We can always abort evolutions. And that Gardevoir evolution doesn't happen except on level up. So long as you're safely in the middle of 99, you should be fine."_

" _So how're you going to get a hold of testosterone?"_ Oskar asked.

" _We can probably find some at a hospital."_

At the hospital, Mewtwo rubbed his forehead. So that was it. Michael's Shiny Stone was lying on her chest. What point was there to helping these two? They were ineffectual in the battle against human control. Then again... the unusual evolution request might just help. And every little effort was needed, given how many of his plans went astray due to random chaos. Yet, wasn't this just another instance of random chaos?

On the other hand, this was an interesting scientific experiment. Would rebalancing the Kirlia's body chemistry be enough to trigger a male evolution in a female? And what other practical applications could this have?

" _So then..."_ Oskar said, puzzled and twitching his long ears.

" _I've got in under control,"_ Mewtwo said. He picked the needle up telekinetically and drew up a dose of the chemical. Working carefully, he injected the testosterone in small spurts, changing the needle tip every time he had to draw some more. With two full doses, the Shiny Stone began to sparkle. Halfway through the third, he had to withdraw the needle as Michael was evolving.

As the light vanished, they could see that the Shiny Stone was gone. Michael was over twice her height and body mass as before, rapidly dissipating the alcohol in her system. She opened her eyes groggily. _"What... happened? Did it work?"_

" _Look for yourself,"_ Mewtwo said, pointing out a mirror on the back of the door.

Her hair had grown into a style distinctive of the Gardevoirs, green and slightly falling over her left eye. She had the skirt-growth too, at least in back. On her front, the petals were stunted, only coming a third of the way to her knees. She looked at herself for a moment, then turned to him, furious. " _Why you...!"_

Automatically, a pair of sharp green blades extended from her wrists. They went out about two feet and were balanced by a smaller extension behind the wrist. She was stunned by the sight and feel of them.

" _You wound up hybridizing,"_ Mewtwo explained. " _Perhaps if I had given you a higher dose much quicker, and without the Stone on you, you could have made a full evolution into a Gallade."_

Michael was quietly examining her blades, as if making sure that they were really there. Oskar smiled at her. _"That's great. You'll whip everybody now."_

Not wanting to hang around any longer, Mewtwo nodded. _"Give the humans hell. With that done, I've got things to do."_ He then teleported away.

Halfway to Agate, he appeared. Desert was all around him. His head pounded, but he managed to send a telepathic message to Deoxys. His partner showed up shortly. "Mewtwo? What happened?"

"The Time Flute had guards," he answered. "I couldn't get it. What did you find out?"

"Well... I ran into Celebi. But I got her to tell me something interesting how I might be one of the thousand."

The thousand... the reason Entei had given for the execution was because Mewtwo wasn't one of the thousand. "Oh really? What did she say?"

"She said I need to find one of the Plates of Arceus, and ask it what my title is. What's your title?"

"I don't have one. But this is interesting. The Plates of Arceus..." As he began thinking of it, a sharp pain struck his mind. He was still affected by the hangover. "Why don't you try teleporting us home? I... I need to rest."

Deoxys nodded. "Okay, I can do it."

* * *

 

Extra: An Extra's Opinion

Michael: Mewtwo isn't a good guy to date…


	9. Teenagers

The cobblestone streets were bustling with activity. People and Pokemon mingled, but this was no ordinary day. In the beautiful weather, everyone was done up for a grand occasion. Women wore the brightest, fanciest, and most fashionable dresses they owned. Men wore smart hats and crisp outfits. And even the Pokemon, they were not left out. Various Pokemon wore hats, scarves, jewels, shells, shoes, badges, ribbons, signs, shields, armor, and even a toaster. It was an amazing sight.

" _Wow, everyone's dressed so nicely,"_ Deoxys said as he watched the people of Hearthome gather from a hidden alleyway.

" _This is a festival in a Contest town,"_ Mewtwo explained. _"It's all about appearances here. I watched a Smart Contest once, thinking that would be interesting. But the winner was such an idiot. He only looked smart and that's how he won."_

" _So why aren't we dressed up? It looks like fun. I wonder where I can find a fancy hat..."_

His elder simply shook his head. _"I'd rather not deal with all that fuss."_

" _But you should look the part if you're going to be here,"_ a female's voice interrupted them.

Deoxys drifted around and back, surprised. Mewtwo just groaned. _"Mew, will you cut it out?"_

She put her hands to her lips and giggled. _"Aw, but I just wanted to see you guys."_

" _Whew, you scared me,"_ Deoxys said.

" _Sorry."_ She twirled around. _"Anyhow, what are you doing here?"_

" _We're..."_

Mewtwo shot him a silencing look _. "That's none of your business."_

" _Is it? Well, I thought you'd like to know something. If you're after a certain Meadow Plate, you'll need to hurry. There's someone in the crowds that wants to steal it."_

He considered that, then asked, _"Why are you telling us this?"_

" _I don't want you getting into trouble. If you mean to get up close to it quickly, you will need to disguise yourselves."_

He muttered something under his breath _. "I am not dressing up like some showy fool."_

" _I can teach you something that'll help a lot in crowds like this, if you want."_

Before Mewtwo could refuse as usual, Deoxys asked, _"How? Anyone who sees us will know that we're different."_

Mew looked delighted. _"There's a special skill that only certain Pokemon can use. I'm sure you two can. It's called Guise. It'll make you look like a human."_

" _That's ridiculous,"_ Mewtwo sneered.

" _But it works! Let me show you."_ She waved her hand and tail, making the air shimmer around them. When it settled down, she was the pink-haired Glitter Glameow instead of Mew.

Mewtwo had transformed into a young man with the same pink hair and same bright blue eyes. He wore a dark green jacket over a white t-shirt, and blue jeans. Deoxys had a more pre-adolescent look, being shorter than the other two, with a haircut that looked like a green and red Qwilfish. It was difficult to tell what gender he was, as his green t-shirt and jeans did not settle the issue. His eyes were two different colors, the left brown, the right hazel.

Mewtwo growled. "Pink hair? What's up with that?"

Mew smiled sweetly. "You are my son, after all."

Deoxys looked wide-eyed. "Oh my gosh, you're Glitter Glameow? I love your music!"

She patted his head. "Thanks Deoxys. I've been living under this disguise for several years now. I just wanted to do something different."

"So why do I look like this?" he asked, looking at his hands. "I'm short."

"Well, you're not fully mature yet, so you turned into a child. Your human form is different from those I've seen, yes. Maybe it's because you evolved from a virus."

"I see."

"As you get used to it, you'll be able to change this form at will. If I went with my standard form, I'd be older looking, with shorter hair."

"I guess this'll have to do," Mewtwo said. His hair was now black, as were his clothes. "Let's go, Deoxys."

"How'd you learn to change so quickly?" Mew asked, stepping back. "It usually takes dozens of uses to learn how to manipulate Guise."

He glared at her. "In case you've forgotten, I am half human." Then he turned and left.

Deoxys smiled. "Bye, grandma. And thanks for the spell." He hurried after Mewtwo.

"You're welcome," she said, her smile fading off as they left. "Gosh, I never thought anyone would call me grandma. Especially not a child from him."

She watched them pause at the end of the alleyway. Mewtwo was gauging the crowd, looking for threats. Deoxys took his hand and was either unnoticed or tolerated for it. Could this strange Pokemon really be the second chance that her son really needed? Or would he cut this relationship short, like every other?

Once they slipped into the flow of humans, Mew took hold of her braid and considered it. "I wonder if he realizes that the guise he chose makes him look like Giovanni." She frowned, then scowled and knocked a nearby trash can over. "**** that man!"

* * *

 

"Test your strength! Make the bell ring and win great prizes!"

"Ice cream, fifteen flavors! A great price so come on over."

"Bring your Pokemon over here for..."

"Hey kid, who does your hair?"

Deoxys looked up at a teenager who had a black mohawk. The carnival was exciting. So many things to see, do, smell, play... but Mewtwo moved through the crowd with purpose, carefully asking around about the Meadow Plate. Deoxys had to work to keep up. But he wanted to look around.

The mohawk teen smiled. "That's a wild do you got."

"Um, my grandma taught me."

"Really? Wish I had your grandma. She's got to be one cool customer."

"Uh, yeah."

"Come on," Mewtwo called firmly.

"Bye," he told the teen. Then he hustled after Mewtwo. "Can we look around after we find the Plate? There's lots of interesting things around."

"We don't have money available," he pointed out. "And we don't want to stick around for long when we're done, or we may get caught."

"But can't we have some fun?"

"This is serious, Deoxys. We need that Plate."

Deoxys frowned, but as he was shorter now, it went unnoticed. These missions were interesting, but sometimes, they weren't as fun as they could be. But his elder really did know better, so he would just have to resist temptation and go along with the objective.

They ended up in the Hearthome Gym. It was an eerie place, with dark violet stonework and ghostly stained windows. While the building had multiple levels, the Meadow Plate they were looking for was right on the entrance level. It was grass green, about the size of a pack of notebook paper. An aura permeated it, like a sunny field with lush grass and vibrant wildflowers. There was no security precautions taken for the Plate's presence; it simply sat on top of a table ten feet in front of them.

And there was someone there with it, a strange man with cold eyes and metallic blue hair. He wore a silver-gray uniform with a large black gun at his side. On his wrist, there was a strange metal brace that had something more to it; Deoxys' senses couldn't pinpoint what more, but it would definitely do something.

He looked at them and only saw a man and a child. "The Gym is currently closed," he stated. "It's off limits to the public for the time being."

"That didn't stop you, Cyrus," Mewtwo said, clenching his fist.

He narrowed his eyes. "Who are you?"

"That doesn't matter. You will leave if you know what's good for you."

"I don't take orders from anyone. But I will leave." He put his hand on the Meadow Plate.

"Leave that. Or else."

"It doesn't belong to you."

"It doesn't belong to you either."

Cyrus' hand moved slightly on his leg. Then he rapidly drew the gun and fired at Deoxys. He was bewildered and alarmed at the sudden bang. Afraid, his body froze up.

The bullet never reached him. Once the second of panic subsided, he saw Mewtwo in front of him. He had discarded the Guise spell in order to focus on the bullet. It hung in the air two feet in front of him before dropping harmlessly on the ground.

For a moment, Cyrus looked flustered. Then his eyes hardened and he fired again in rapid succession. Mewtwo halted the second bullet as well, but the third struck his chest. A fourth and fifth also found their mark, causing him to collapse to his knees.

"You can't do that to him!" Deoxys shouted in a flash of anger. He changed into his Speed form, losing the Guise in the process. He flicked his arm whips and made them snap.

Cyrus grabbed the Plate fully off the table and fired his gun at Deoxys. He darted out of the way. In response, the strange man started firing ahead of him to make the shots connect. Deoxys managed to weave out of the bullet paths, then teleported to behind the human. He lashed out with his right whip, trying to strike him across the back.

But a gray energy appeared. The metal brace he had noticed earlier was a shield generator. He flew back and threw Psychic at him. However, Cyrus' shield also deflected that. He still decided to make a run for it, heading straight for the door. Deoxys threw another Psychic after him, but stayed in the Gym.

"Mewtwo!" He rushed over to his elder. "Are you gonna be okay?"

Three trails of blood ran down his chest, with two more on his back. His face was twisted into a grimace of pain. Grasping at Deoxys' left arm, he looked up at him. "Teleport us out of here. But not far... I might pass out."

A worried sickness filled his body. "Where?"

"Just anywhere quiet."

Deoxys nodded and took them out of the Gym.

They appeared near the Cathedral, on a wooded side. There wasn't anyone around to see them. Deoxys' aura was dense with worry. "Mewtwo, you're bleeding badly."

" _I know."_ He cast Recover over his wounds, to quickly seal the blood vessels. He then focused on the bullet remaining in his chest. If it had been unimpeded by his attempt to stop it, it would have passed right through his body into Deoxys. As of now, it was stuck at the skin layer of his back.

Mewtwo took a moment to cast Calm Mind; this was going to hurt like hell. Then, he mentally took hold to the bullet and forced it out of his body. He didn't let himself wince at the pain. Just cast Recover again, be strong. Then he brought the bullet around to look at it. A higher quality and caliber than he had trained with so far, but not the best available. As he looked over the red shine of his blood, he was reminded of all the other times he had failed miserably lately. The frustration stirred, but Mewtwo left it to smolder.

His companion paled at the sight of the bullet. _"Y-you okay?"_

" _It's fine, I know what I'm doing. This isn't the first time I've been shot, after all."_

" _It isn't?"_

" _Far from it."_ He cast Recover again. It was always a real struggle to heal these things.

" _I was afraid for a bit that you'd gotten killed."_

He nearly blew it off, but when he looked at Deoxys, the younger Pokemon was deeply concerned. " _Well... it might have. None of them hit my lungs or heart."_ He started to laugh bitterly, but it hurt. " _Geez... if I know you could dodge bullets like that... and you don't even have standard organs. You'd probably take a bullet far better than me. Just goes to show what happens when you let yourself think irrationally."_

" _Do we need to go to the Pokecenter?"_

" _We're better off not going in there."_

" _Why?"_

" _I doubt they would help me. Anyhow, I can handle this. I just need somewhere safe and quiet."_ He turned around and looked in the cathedral windows. There was no one inside. _"This place should do fine. If..."_ he raised his left hand, scanning the building. Sensing what he wanted, he pointed to the second floor. _"There's a storage room up there. Get us in there."_

" _All right."_ Deoxys took hold of him again and brought them into the room. There were a dozen stacks of chairs, some piles of cloth, folding tables, three markerboards, and four couches.

Mewtwo took a white cloth and wrapped it around his body to help cover the wound. Then he settled onto one of the couches. Recover worked just fine for the normal damage Mewtwo got in battle. Captive Pokemon did not fight with deadly intent and wild ones never had the power to cause him severe damage. But a bullet wound that went through his body was not normal. Weakened by the touch of steel, unable to focus his mental powers, stuck in a human building, there wasn't much he could do if someone came upon them. He could only hope that his training of Deoxys was sufficient enough to get them through this.

"You're going to be in charge for now," he told his junior. "I don't think I can maintain rational thought for much longer with this pain."

"Shouldn't you go to a Pokecenter, if it's that bad?"

"As I said, I don't think they'll help me. This isn't the first time I've had to deal with this kind of thing." He clenched his fist. "It's just going to take a miserably long time to get through."

"But it could get infected. It could kill you."

"I'll be fine." Grimacing to a pulse of pain, he gave it a second thought. "Actually, if you think you can handle it, can you break into the pharmacy and get me some strong painkillers? Something antibiotic would help."

"It's not right to steal," he said reluctantly.

"Deoxys, people consider us criminals," he snapped. "The humans aren't as nice as you imagine them to be. Even if you could manage it, they wouldn't give the medications to you if they knew they were meant for me."

He brought his hand up to his face. "Are you sure?"

"Yes. It's always been that way."

"I'll try."

He closed his eyes, then thought of something. He looked back to Deoxys, who was waiting worriedly. " _Thank you."_

It made him smile slightly _. "You're welcome."_

* * *

There was a knock at the door. "Come in," Giovanni called.

One of his Team Administrators came in and placed a black Dusk Ball on the desk. "Sir, here's the Pokemon you asked about."

"Ah, very good." He picked it up and looked over the status screen. "Here you are, Michael. You've caused quite a stir the past week."

"She is a hybrid of a Gallade and Gardevoir, not pure of either kind. But she is very strong. KO'ed most of the team sent to capture her."

"Good. I'll be taking her down to the lab for examination." He left his current project and went downstairs. On the way, he ran into Cyrus. "Have any luck in Hearthome?"

He looked suspicious. "I never told you where I was. And what are you doing here?"

"Assisting with your project, of course. I have a lot of experience in this kind of matter and your scientists seem to appreciate it."

"What about him?" he asked, glancing at the Rocket Admin.

"I told them that they could find me here. So then, you were...?"

For the moment, Cyrus gave in. "I acquired the Meadow Plate in Hearthome. I also ran into Mewtwo and Deoxys."

"Really? They were after the Plate as well, I assume."

"Yes. Doesn't make sense to me, as they're both pure Psychics."

"That doesn't matter. It's a powerful artifact."

"Right." He started to go down the hall, but then stopped to add one more thing. "They acted odd back there. I fired a gun at Deoxys and found out that Mewtwo could stop bullets. He wasn't even in the path, but then I shot him three times. So he's probably weak now somewhere around Hearthome if you want to go after him."

"I'll think about it."

So Mewtwo would take a bullet for his companion. Was it that same principle of instinct that made child Trainers so annoyingly powerful? In any case, Mewtwo had a new weakness, and it was growing. The time to strike would be soon.

* * *

 

Using Guise to pass through the streets unnoticed, Deoxys approached the pharmacy. There were only two other customers, with two workers handling them. They seemed like nice polite people.

He hesitated again, thinking. It had started with wondering why that crazy blue-haired man wanted to kill him and wound up reconsidering things he'd taken for granted. He had taken all that happened for granted; if Mewtwo said something had to be done, then it was fine. But really, they were criminals and he was about to do something criminal on his own. And he kept thinking back to the Abra he met at the warehouse. He had sensed death and a joy in dealing death, but then Mewtwo had come out perfectly unharmed.

But this had to be done. He didn't want his adopted father to suffer and if this would help, it had to be done.

Deoxys went up to the information booth at the end of the counter. It had walls and a simple door, so that a customer could discuss something private with the pharmacist. For what he planned, it was best. One of the workers came over to him. "Good afternoon. How can I help you?"

Recalling Mewtwo's hypnosis lessons, he looked into the man's green eyes with subduing Psychic energy. "You will help me."

The man's eyes instantly went blank. "Yes, I will help you."

Sighing in relief, he continued eye contact. "You will not remember this when we leave. My father is suffering from bullet wounds. He needs some kind of pain killer."

His mind went into an automatic process, albeit a little rough. "Your father..."

"He's a Pokemon."

"Pokemon medications... is there a risk of infection?"

"Yeah, he said antibiotics would help."

"What's his body mass?"

"Body mass? I think he's about two hundred and seventy pounds... six feet tall."

"When was he injured?"

"An hour ago."

The pharmacist put the information in a computer. "Pain killer," he mumbled. "Antibacterial agent..."

He got up for a minute, then returned to the counter with a large dark-colored bottle. He measured this out into a smaller bottle. On the other side, Deoxys felt his heart pound as one of the real customers walked by. What if she noticed? What should he do then? Mewtwo had acted as if this would be nothing, but it was nerve-wracking. Maybe he had more experience in this. But if he was experienced in theft, then he was a criminal. On a few of the cop shows, he had learned that it was against the law to help criminals. Mewtwo was very smart, but also very wrong? But it was also wrong to leave someone he loved to suffer... Deoxys bit his lip. What was the right thing to do?

Then, the pharmacist placed the smaller bottle and a measuring cup into a brown bag and gave that to Deoxys. "Two tablespoons to start with, one tablespoon twelve hours later. Continue at one tablespoon every twelve hours for seven more days. There is exactly that much in here. Keep the wounds clean. He won't be fully alert and his mind will not be clear, but he will be in less pain and heal faster."

Nodding, he took the bag. "Okay, thanks a lot. Make sure the computer doesn't make a record. And you can't remember this."

"I won't remember."

"You can go back to work once I leave the store." He paused, still nervous. "And, I'm really sorry about this."

He left then, before the other pharmacy worker could figure out something was up. Mewtwo had spoken as if this wouldn't be too much trouble. But Deoxys felt a sickening sense of guilt. What if the pharmacist got into trouble? The man could maybe even lose his job, but it wasn't his fault. It was Deoxys' fault for hypnotizing him and forcing him to hand over the medication. But if he didn't do it, Mewtwo could get into trouble. Maybe even die... that was too horrible a thought to consider for long.

As he went back to the Cathedral, his mind was so preoccupied that he didn't notice the people around him. Someone grabbed hold of his shoulder. "Deoxys."

Startled, he didn't fight when the man turned him around. He was large, with red hair streaked with gray. There was something odd about his aura, like it didn't fit the body it was in. "W-who are you?" he asked.

He leaned down and quietly said, "A strong one like you. I am Heatran, the soul of a volcano. What are you doing here on your own?"

Another Pokemon able to use Guise? But Mew said only certain... it had to be the most powerful Pokemon. "I'm just shopping."

"At a drug store?"

"It doesn't concern you." He clenched the paper bag, determined not to lose it.

"You concern us. We can tell you're a powerful youth, but you need instruction. He's just out to use you and won't hesitate to kill you when you get in his way. You'll be safer coming with me."

Deoxys tried to pull away, but Heatran's hold was firm. "You don't know that."

"You don't realize how dangerous and unbalanced Mewtwo is."

"He is not!" Deoxys shouted, then threw Return at him. As it knocked him back, he was able to run off. In the confusion of the moment, people were less likely to blame the small child running from the large man.

* * *

 

Several minutes later, Heatran was back in his original form, with Uxie floating beside him. They were in a rocky field outside of Hearthome. "Thanks, that was a close call."

"You're welcome. I called them."

As he mentioned it, the three Johto beasts appeared. "What's the news?" Entei asked.

Suicine sniffed Heatran. "What happened to you? You've been badly injured."

"He was unconscious for a bit," Uxie said.

"I encountered Deoxys on his own," the large volcano Pokemon stated. "He was using Guise and appeared like a young teen. I tried to talk him into coming with me, but he struck me with Return and got away."

"Return?" Entei twitched his ears. "But to knock you unconscious, it had to have been at max strength. Yet, he has no Trainer."

"He has Mewtwo," Uxie pointed out.

"His feelings are that strong?"

"We have to separate them, and soon," Suicine said, pawing the ground. "We don't want another corrupt young immortal around."

"You might have a lucky break," Heatran added. "I caught the youth coming out of a drug store. I heard there was a gunfight in Hearthome today. Mewtwo is probably injured."

"Right." Entei paused, then shook out his fur. "And yet, I say we'd better go for broke and summon him."


	10. Night Terror

Mewtwo seemed more relaxed when the medication kicked in. He held still as Deoxys checked on the wound from the back. "It's less time than I planned for. That's good."

"I hypnotized the pharmacist to get it."

"At least you didn't call attention to us."

"Yeah. That's clean." He drifted back. "It still looks nasty, though."

"It will for a while. Now we just need to keep the humans out of this room. My energy signature isn't going to be strong enough to be tracked like this."

"I see."

He looked over to Deoxys as he tied another one of the cloths around the wound. "What's on your mind?"

"I ran into another one of the immortals, Heatran. He tried to get me to come with him, but I got away."

"Did he follow you?"

"No, I knocked him down."

"While in Guise? Good work."

"Mewtwo, why are they after you? He called you dangerous."

He snorted. "They would say that."

"But why?"

"They didn't even know about my existence until I blasted my way out of the lab I was born in."

"You were born in a lab?"

He nodded. "I was cloned from Mew originally, but there's something special about her DNA. It is capable of shifting itself into new forms while she is alive and conscious. Any form, really, as she can turn herself into any Pokemon. Or human, I suppose. I was too young to know how to do it on my own, so they experimented on tampering with my genes."

"Is that why you look different?"

"Partly. They didn't know how to manipulate it either." He paused. "It was painful. But no matter what I did, they never stopped the experiments. Then they cut off the Transform ability I naturally had by fusing human DNA in with mine. That transformation was the worst."

"So you ran away, huh?"

A dark look came to his eyes. "I killed almost all of the ones who tortured me. Then I ran for it. But I missed the most important one and he torments me to this day."

Deoxys felt a chill of horror. "You killed them?"

"Things won't change unless something drastic happens. Killing is often the fastest way to get my point across. Besides, they deserve it. All humans are either cruel or foolish. I will..." he yawned.

"You'd better get some sleep," Deoxys said, hoping it was just the medication affecting him. But it might not be.

* * *

 

"I'm not sure you should be doing this," Cresselia said when they met her at New Moon Isle. "I don't want to deal with him thinking he's more important that he is."

"You have to admit that he will be most effective against Mewtwo," Suicune pointed out.

"Right. But he can cause just as much trouble."

"He hasn't actually killed anyone in centuries. So let's just try."

She sighed. "Fine. But you'll have to report to the whole council if something goes wrong."

The four legendaries approached a black obelisk in the center of the island. Yellow Unown script shone on its glossy surface. Entei got up on his hand legs and touched the obelisk with his forepaws. "Awaken, Darkrai the Antagonist. We have official business for you."

A little reluctant, Cresselia bowed her head and made a crescent glow. A black aura enveloped the obelisk. A deep chuckle filled the air, then the aura left the obelisk. Darkrai smiled and made a mocking bow. "You called, beautiful?"

"They called you," Cresselia replied sharply.

"What for? I haven't broken any of the bonds of my power."

Entei spoke for the group. "It's not you who's the problem right now. It's Mewtwo."

"Mew's son? Can't you have her deal with it?"

"She's biased," Suicune said.

"The council has decided to kill Mewtwo and assigned us to the task. However, he is being difficult. We want your help."

Darkrai's smile widened as he put one of his hands to his chest. "Kill him? Oh I don't know about that. You could get me into trouble so easily with that."

"He's already a marked Pokemon, so there will be few repercussions." Entei twitched his tail. "If you want to avoid trouble, for some reason, you could merely track him for us. He does not know how to hide his aura, yet he manages to make himself difficult to find."

"You really want him dead, huh? He must have caused major problems if you'd ask me for help."

"Would you please help us?"

"Since you ask so nicely, I couldn't politely refuse, now could I?" Closing his eyes, he reached out into the air and seemed to pluck at invisible strings. Cresselia watched attentively; she could hear those signals as well. Then Darkrai laughed softly. "There, now?"

"Where is he?" Entei asked.

The dark one looked back at him. "I do not lie when I say that he is currently hiding in a holy place of Sinnoh. His junior brought him there to recover from serious damage. So if you mean to strike with deadly intent, now would be the time."

"A holy place in Sinnoh? Which one? There's close to a hundred spots that match that description."

"I can't narrow it down either," Cresselia said. "He is weak now, harder to pick out of the strong holy aura."

"But he sleeps," Darkrai pointed out. "I will find him by our ways. From that point, we'll see." His body faded out to black, then vanished.

"We'd best start making a sweep of the region," Raikou said. "If we can't find him, we'll have to find him through Deoxys."

"I'd rather not go that route," Suicune said. "We can't break the young one's trust." They were gone in a blink.

Cresselia looked at the obelisk and sighed. "I hope this was a good idea."

* * *

 

The walls were made of wood. Treated wood, so it wasn't like he could just burn the place down. But Mewtwo had destroyed the staff who tormented him, so he couldn't care less what happened to the building. The question was, why was he here? He should be injured and resting in Sinnoh, not examining this old building in Kanto.

And certainly not back in time, right after he had escaped.

Normally his dreams weren't this vivid, but that was one explanation. There was also Celebi to consider. Since she contacted Deoxys when he fought the Johto trio, she might be trying to get rid of him now by throwing him into the past. It wouldn't help their cause much, he thought. It made the reasons he was trying to subjugate the humans fresh again.

Mewtwo wandered around in the ruins, his mood wavering between bitterness and inner pain. As he came upon doorways and halls, he checked for any movements. Any reason for a battle; the tension seemed to choke his heart, irritating the three bullet wounds. Nothing moved, save for dust or papers fluttered by the air from vents. One door after another, and another, and another, nothing...

He stopped. The next door would be the lab library.

All this time, he hadn't considered where he was going in the lab. He was just moving about. But he didn't want to go by the library right now. Besides, it would make more sense to go to the security control room. He decided to go there instead.

"Why? Are you afraid?"

Turning sharply, he saw Giovanni in the hall as well. He still had that irritating absence of presence that kept Mewtwo from sensing him or his intentions. And that clean-cut professional appearance that held no clue to his corrupt nature. "What are you doing here? I don't remember running into you."

"What are you doing here? And why do you not go down there? Is it because of him?"

"That doesn't matter!"

"It does, because," he nodded and pointed to the library, "you claim to hate all humans, but you care an awful lot about that one's death."

"Why should it matter to you? It's just a statistic to you, isn't it? Just another person you killed."

Giovanni waved back towards the rest of the lab. "Aren't they just statistics to you? Just some people you killed? Is that one only important because you linked with his mind as he got killed?"

Anger burned through his mind, but the recent wounds clenched at his chest. They would restrict any power he tried to use. "I'm surprised you even remember him."

"But then what do you know of him? Do you know his name?"

Mewtwo fired Psychic at him. Although he definitely hit, it didn't do a thing. He tried Thunderbolt, Flamethrower, Earthquake, Ice Beam... but Giovanni just stood there. The walls around them crumbled to dust, leaving them in a strange space: a place of white tiles surrounded by murky violet fog. Gold and silver lights occasionally flickered deep in the fog.

And his energy seemed to drain at an incredible rate. He'd never gotten this fatigued in a single battle. While his injuries explained some of that, he suspected something else was draining him. It got to the point where he could barely keep himself standing, even by his mental powers.

Giovanni just stood there, unharmed.

"What's going on?" he asked, trying to hide his exhaustion behind anger.

While Mewtwo expected him to smile smugly, his expression remained cold. "You are like your father, aren't you?"

"What?"

Showing no emotion, he raised his hand and created a dark aura. "Dark Void." It flew out like but entirely too fast for smoke. When it struck him, his exhaustion overcame him. He did not fall unconscious; instead, he fell out of a waking state.

"If you were even awake to begin with."

* * *

 

Deoxys looked over the festival, but it didn't seem as enticing as before. There was too much to worry about now. And he didn't have any money. Mewtwo had been right about that. As Deoxys looked back at the Cathedral, he couldn't even sense him. Which was good, as nobody else should notice them. But it was also bad, because Deoxys wasn't there with him.

Or maybe it was better that he was out here. Heatran said that Mewtwo wouldn't hesitate to kill him. And maybe that Abra had been asking who would protect him from Mewtwo. But no, his adopted father had taken care of him, so he wouldn't hurt him now. Right?

"Ah man, I've got to learn how to do that hairstyle," a familiar voice said.

Deoxys looked around and spotted the teenager from earlier, the one with the black mohawk. He was walking with a girl with long purple hair. "Why would you want your hair to look like a bi-colored Qwilfish?" she asked.

"But that's totally got to be the new style. I saw a kid with the same kind of thing earlier." They then walked further into the crowd and he lost their voices.

Kid? Deoxys looked down at himself and realized that his Guise form had somehow grown a lot over the period of one day. But he hadn't thought to change it. Everything about this day was unsettling. Why was that?

Something came to him. His psychic senses detected a sharp increase in aura. Aura was given off by all living beings, but the one... ones giving off this increase had to be powerful. Worried, he crept towards them.

Over in the trees, well away from the festival, Deoxys spotted a group of Pokemon. More immortals? Heatran wasn't among the group and they all seemed to be Psychic or part-Psychic. Would they sense him?

The one with a yellow head-growth, like a helmet, spoke. "I know it's going to be an inconvenience, but we've decided to put a teleport lock over Sinnoh. Mewtwo is here and the chosen executioners are seeking him out."

Executioners? Deoxys felt a pang in his heart. So they considered him that dangerous... but what should he do? He loved his father, but he certainly was a killer and criminal.

"Well none of us seem to be able to pinpoint his location any better than Darkrai did," another one said. "What are we to do now?"

The yellow headed one put his hands together. "Our priority should be finding the child, Deoxys. We believe that he is in danger or will become a danger if he remains in Mewtwo's care for much longer. But he has shown himself to be strongly and blindly loyal. Choose your words carefully when you encounter him. We cannot afford to earn his distrust."

"But we must help him. He shows a lot of promise and could do great things in the world. But the way he's going now, he will simply cause chaos and pain just like Mewtwo does."

Deoxys' whips trembled. What was the right thing to do?

* * *

 

Mewtwo awoke to a throbbing pain in his chest. His mind felt muddled, although glimpses of the dream remained in front. Trying to dismiss the ruined lab from his mind, he got up to take another dose of the painkiller. He didn't see Deoxys in the storage room. Maybe he was out exploring the festival. Although he tried to be angry about it, all he felt was a passive acceptance.

He might have been too harsh back then, telling him they couldn't waste time. As it turned out, it didn't matter in the end what they did. Cyrus got the Plate. If they had wasted time, he might have avoided getting shot.

After taking the medicine, Mewtwo undid his bandaging and examined the wounds. They were healing, but he still had several days left for fully recover. It would be long and boring. In the past, he had found some project to pass the time. But with the painkiller this time, his mind was working slower than normal. At least it also kept his aura weak, so fewer people could find him.

'Mewtwo?'

He recognized the telepathic touch. _'I'm awake, Deoxys. You can come in.'_

Instead of using the door and possibly alerting someone, he teleported in. " _How are you?"_

" _Still weak. Exhausted, actually. I've slept so much it's hard to get up."_

" _Did you take your medicine? You were still sleeping when the time came for the last dose."_

He nodded. " _I did."_

" _Good."_ Deoxys started looking around the room, drifting along.

Mewtwo watched him. His eyes weren't quite looking at the things around them, indicating that his mind was working at something. " _Is something bothering you?"_

His silent response answered for him, as he gazed downward and his limbs stilled from their usual twitch-and-curl motions.

" _Did they harass you again? Various ones have bugged me over the years."_

Deoxys moved closer to the couch. " _Mewtwo... how many people have you killed?"_

If it had been anyone else, they would have been getting too personal. But from him, Mewtwo felt something wasn't right. It wasn't that he was ashamed... he'd never be ashamed of that. Never. " _Why do you want to know? It's not important."_

" _But it is, to them. To their family and friends. To the Pokemon who knew and loved them. One death affects so many people. How many people have you affected through murder?"_

Mewtwo felt a chill. He normally didn't think about that. It was unnecessary. He was out to change things, to make the world better. If he was too sensitive to death like that, nothing would ever get done. He had come up with detailed proofs of the necessity of his methods. But when he saw Deoxys' face, he was at a loss for words.

Deoxys was disappointed in him. And disillusioned? Mewtwo knew that his partner couldn't stay childish forever, but he had expected to keep his faith and admiration.

When he spoke again, his voice was a little colder. " _You aren't even thinking about them."_

" _It's..."_ but all words seemed worthless.

" _You're too dangerous and you don't care about it. You speak of the humans imbalancing things, but you are doing the same thing."_ He put his hand to his chest, reluctant but feeling something was necessary. _"I've gone wrong in following you. But they said if..."_ his fingers tensed.

Despite his pain and medication muddled mind, Mewtwo knew what he couldn't say. " _How could they be so cruel to you?"_

"Do you care about those you've been cruel to?"

Mewtwo looked over to where there should have been a wall. Instead, it was Giovanni... no, that false Govanni from earlier. The wall was gone, replaced with that odd murky fog.

"What are you doing here?" Mewtwo asked sharply, especially disturbed by his intrusion on that moment of weakness.

"What are you doing here?" he echoed. "This is my realm, my world." He raised his hand and cast Dark Void again.

Mewtwo found himself on a frozen ocean. Nearby, the bright tropical beach waved and wobbled, as if it were the water instead of the ground. Various colored couches flew overhead in great flocks while trees played leapfrog on the shore, causing great splashes of sand when they landed. Off in the background, a grandfather clock seemed to tick.

Giovanni stood on the ocean with him. "My realm, my world," he repeated.

Looking critically at him, he noticed that he was still calm, still serious. Not a sign of his usual pride and smugness showed. Mewtwo turned to face this person. "You aren't Giovanni."

He blinked, and his eyes turned red. "You've noticed."

Clenching his fist, he realized who he was up against. "If your world is a nightmare, you must be Darkrai."

The whole crazy scene flickered like a television losing its signal. The false Giovanni's hair flung itself out, growing down to his knees and turning snow white. With his clothes flapping and warping, he reformed himself into his regular ghoulish form. "That is so."

This was not good. Due to the Dark-type's immunity to Psychic powers, Mewtwo could not read a thing about Darkrai. Not his mood, not his thoughts, not his motive, not his intentions, not his level... and Darkrai probably had a far higher level than the Johto trio, as he was reportedly far older. Many of Mewtwo's best skills would do absolutely nothing to him, while the simplest of his opponent's skills might blow him away. And that wasn't even considering this was 'his realm' instead of the real world.

The ghoul waved him to come closer. "While you are here, why not talk with me for a while?"

"Why should I? What have you been doing to me?"

"I have been doing to you? My power is that of dreams that break down your defenses, blossom off your fears and hates. I have the power... but when you come into my realm, it is your own mind that becomes your worst enemy. I know little of what you see now."

Mewtwo didn't trust him. If he was lying, then he knew things no one else should know. "What did you see with me?"

"Just the general, nothing really specific. You have an Oedipal complex, don't you?"

He frowned. "That would require me to be in love with Mew."

"Ah right, neither of you would appreciate that. Maybe half of it, then. What's your title, by the way?"

"I don't know. And I don't really care anymore."

"Really? And why would that be?"

"This is all about some legend, isn't it? That there are a thousand legendary Pokemon who are both stronger than normal and much harder to kill. And these thousand apparently helped the Original One to create the world, then got sent into hibernation only to be awakened when their powers are needed to keep the world running smoothly."

"That's the gist of it."

"And each of these thousand has a title that describes their position in the universe, their powers, and their duty. Like you, I think."

Darkrai nodded. "That's right. I'm the Antagonist."

"Antagonist?"

"If you check with the Plates, they'd say, 'Challenger of heroes, the Antagonist has dominion over nightmares. He separates the strong souls from the weak and drives them to become stronger.' And that's pretty much what I do."

Mewtwo shook his head. "Isn't that ridiculous? The one who organized the universe made you specifically to be a bad guy?"

"That's not how it is," Darkrai countered. "I'm a challenger, not a bad guy. I don't do this gig for the love of it. I do it because that's what my power is. I will use it to the best of my ability."

"So then you don't want to do this?"

"I want to. There are some bright points. But my mind and heart are connected to people as they confront the dark mysteries of their souls. It's a painful thing to go through... you know that."

"I thought you said you only knew the general aspect of dreams," he snapped.

He looked puzzled for a moment, then repeated, "Just the general... were you mentally connected to someone at a bad time?"

"I don't want to talk about that."

"Then you were."

Mewtwo waved his hand, trying to dismiss the subject. "That's not the point here! If this title is supposed to describe who you are, then you must have been made to fit that title. So does that mean our lives are controlled from the start? I was created by humans; I am who I am because of what those fools did. If I have some title, does that mean that it was all predestined? If that's so, then Arceus is ******* crazy and evil."

Darkrai rubbed his chin. "Ah yes... that would be something to worry about."

"In that case, I don't want to accept any title given to me by him."

"Her."

Mewtwo crossed his arms over his chest. "Figures."

"You know, I was concerned about that before I learned my title. I was first aware of being prayed to as a cruel god. The ones who called me into being didn't just want to massacre their enemies. They wanted to torture them. So if I am a member of the original thousand, why did I come into the world through a bloodthirsty tribe?"

"Because this world is crueler than people like to admit."

The ghoul shook his head. "No... there is a theory..."

"Theory," he said skeptically. "So you don't know any of this for certain?"

"No. Do you know Arceus' title?"

"It's not the Original One?"

"It's The Mask. The Pokemon named Arceus is The Mask of The Original One."

"Then why do people call her the Original One?"

"Because that's what the humans and the normal Pokemon believe. But not even she remembers exactly what happened at the creation of the universe. We know we were there. If you are one of us, your primal memory is still completely submerged. But from time to time, it comes out as undeniable truth."

Mewtwo narrowed his eyes at Darkrai. "You're just trying to mess with my head still."

"You wish it were so, so you could deny it. Mew's theory, and so far no one has come up with anything better, is that we were not in these forms when we were part of the Original One. When a call for power comes out, for any reason, good or evil, the caller draws upon a primal force to bring into the world. So what happened with me is that my tribe wanted their dark god to be alive. They managed to call a primal soul, me, and form me to their call. The titles are not set when the universe was made. The titles are set when you take one of the Plates and ask for it."

"So no predestiny?"

"No. Actually, when I first asked for my title, the Plate wouldn't tell me. It said I wasn't ready. I had to learn something first."

"What was that?"

Darkrai smirked. "Have you learned it? You really should find a Plate and ask for yourself. If it gives you a title, then the other hands cannot kill you. If it doesn't, you might learn something about yourself instead."

"I think you are just messing with my head. That, or my medication is stronger than I thought. So Mew came up with this theory?"

"Yes. She's incredibly intelligent. Of course, you would know that firsthand."

"What's her title?"

"She is The Mother of All, for her unconditional love for everyone and anyone." His eyes softened some as he considered it. "She even loved me when everyone else feared and despised me."

"I don't believe it," he muttered.

"You should," Darkrai shot back with such sharpness that Mewtwo nearly jumped. "They asked me to help kill you. But you're the son of Mew, so I can't do that to her. She's suffered a lot for your sake the past three decades. It's about time that you stop being a blind fool and accept her."

"I have my reasons," he replied defensively.

He calmed down. "I suppose you do, although you've misunderstood the truth. Or maybe you don't realize it. Will you seek one of the Plates again?"

"Fine, I will. I don't expect much from it, though."

"Good, then it'll surprise you." Darkrai smiled. "I have been watching you for a while now. Some of your accomplishments, or just the attempts, have been impressive. If you were part Dark type, I'd be severely tempted to take you on as an apprentice. Without a title, there's still a chance for that kind of change in you."

Mewtwo snorted. "No thanks."

"Your loss. I'll send you out of the dream world now. One last warning; don't do anything conspicuous for a little while. I want to see the others be forced to admit that they were wrong."

* * *

 

Deoxys hovered by the couch, watching Mewtwo. He slept there, his wounded chest still covered with the white cloth. With his slow, steady breathing, he seemed to be sleeping peacefully.

He sighed in relief. When he'd returned to the room, his father had been shuddering and mumbling in some nightmare. He was worried that he might hurt himself further. But whatever it was, it had passed.

Checking the clock, he realized that it was late. The festival was still going on, but within the sturdy Cathedral, not a sound of it came to them. He could sense what the other Psychic Pokemon had done. Due to a massive aura interference, teleporting was now impossible. Even if it wasn't there, it was senseless for them to move. They would have to hide here and hope it was good enough.

He still wasn't sure what he should be doing, but he knew that Mewtwo needed him. So Deoxys would be here to protect him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter caused some confusion when it was initially posted, so here's how it works: Mewtwo fell asleep at the end of the first scene, thus the rest of the scenes from his POV are dreams affected by Darkrai. Deoxys was awake the whole time, so he wasn't affected.


	11. To Kidnap a Legend

Mewtwo woke up and found that Deoxys was gone. There was a dull pain in his chest. Carefully, he undid the wrapping and checked on his wounds. Internally, he seemed to have healed up well, although the tissue was weak for the time being. The scabs still looked awful, but even that was beginning to heal. He would need to avoid battle for some time.

Normally, that would annoy him. But although he must have been asleep for at least a week, Darkrai's nightmare was still clear in his mind. He felt like he would need those extra weeks to banish those images as well.

'Mewtwo?'

He had a momentary flashback. 'I'm awake.'

Thankfully, he came in by opening the door and shutting it behind him. He had a bag with him. _"I noticed you were waking up fully, so I went to get us something to eat."_

" _Great. Thank you."_

He chuckled. " _You have to think to do that, don't you?"_

" _I could just not say it. How long has it been?"_

" _Eight days. You had nightmares the first night, but then you've just been asleep or halfway so all week."_

" _I know. We should leave as soon as possible."_

He set out the sub sandwiches, then shook his head. " _We can't. Or we'll have a lot of trouble doing so."_

" _What's the problem?"_

Deoxys looked nervous, then said, " _Some powerful Pokemon are looking to kill you. They've put a teleport lock over Sinnoh while they search for us."_

" _That doesn't surprise me. I'll consider it, but I'm hungry now."_ He glanced around. _"And what's that smell? Vaguely plant-like, some kind of flower."_

" _Oh, I recognized Entei coming towards the Cathedral one day, searching for you. Before he arrived, I searched around until I found a large bottle of rose oil."_ He curled one of his whips around, pleased with himself.

Mewtwo smiled. " _So you blocked out his sense of smell by dumping that all over the place?"_

He nodded. _"Worked perfectly; he was gagging when he came up here and had to leave to clear his head."_

" _Nice thinking. You're getting good at this."_

" _Yeah, I guess."_ He looked thoughtful.

" _What're you thinking now?"_

" _Nothing much, really."_

* * *

 

It was late at night when they decided to leave the Cathedral. With the teleport lock and his need to avoid battle, Mewtwo was cross. But they'd spent far too long in one spot and had to go on the move.

There was one thing to decide on. "We can either leave Sinnoh entirely or search out another one of those Plates. This region seems to be the best area to find them."

"Where would they be?"

"In the Underground, in ruins, in wild places... with the rich. Let's try going south."

"What's south?"

"One of the wealthiest men in the world, Mr. Backlot, lives that way. He has his own private airport. If he doesn't have one of the Plates, we'll at least have a way to get out of the region."

They walked through the pine forest quietly. Under the new moon, there was darkness all around them. Sounds filled the air, though: Kricketots and Kricketunes singing, Hoothoots and Noctowls occasionally calling each other, Mewtwo cussing under his breath every time he tripped on something.

When he wasn't being annoyed at the local immortals for putting a teleport lock over the region, Mewtwo considered the next step. If they could find a Plate soon, they might be able to get the heat off them. If they couldn't, it was best to leave the region and wait for the lock to expire. The trouble was deciding how much time could be spent on a search and how much he could endure while weakened.

Following behind, Deoxys was wondering what to do next too. But it had little to do with the Plates. Once they were out of the region and able to move around at will, he would need to know what to do. Did he stay? A few months ago, he would have gone along unquestioningly. Now he knew that Mewtwo intended to steal a Plate, and probably a plane, he was reluctant to continue. And the fact that he had killed people in his quest for vengeance, that didn't sit well with Deoxys.

They came upon a small airfield. A hanger with three planes and a helicopter stood a few hundred yards off. Beyond the runway, there was a grand mansion. "This is it. Let's get in and search the place."

Mewtwo started across, but Deoxys stayed for a moment. "Are you sure about this?"

He stopped and turned to him. "Are you not?"

Puzzled over what he meant, Deoxys added, "It's probably guarded, right? And we'd get in trouble breaking in."

"Right, which wouldn't be worth the time dealing with. So?" He seemed to have a plan and was simply trying to get Deoxys to plan things as well.

"Well... the Meadow Plate felt a lot like the power of Grass. So we could search the mansion by searching for a concentration of power like that, without even going in."

He held up his hand. "Save for one, the Plate corresponding to dark powers, that would work."

"Why not dark?"

"Dark immunity. We would feel it as an absence where there should be a presence. Why don't you scan the place?"

"Me?"

"You could use the practice."

"I guess." They crossed over the runway to a point where Deoxys felt comfortable in scanning. Then he projected his thoughts out to search the building. In response, he got a mental image of the powers inside. "I sense twenty humans inside, with a dozen Pokemon. There some things of power in there... but I don't think any of the Plates are there."

"Neither do I," Mewtwo replied. "There's a group of evolution stones, many antiques, a Key Item in the form of a blue flute... none of the Plates though. We could search the Underground, but there's more miles of tunnels than there are of roads in Sinnoh. But I've been thinking."

"What're we gonna do?" Deoxys asked hesitantly.

"We could simply leave the region until they got rid of the lock. But then they would check any vehicles leaving Sinnoh. So we might as well force them to get rid of it. For that, we'll take one of them hostage."

He was surprised at the chosen plan. "Take one of the other immortals hostage? But if they're older than us, won't they be more powerful?"

He shook his head. "No. I've learned that they have power seals that lock them to low levels, to match ordinary Pokemon. They seem to be sealed willingly, and won't unseal unless there is no chance of harming a mortal. Thus, while we are here," he pointed to the mansion, then around to the woods, "the others will remain sealed. I can overpower them easily in that state. And you, you got away from that Heatran while he was sealed. If they're alone, we should be fine."

"What about the hostage?"

"I'm thinking through that. I don't like leaving things to chance... although in this situation, it's impossible to control all factors. We could wait until one comes along; they are looking for us. But it would be faster to get one to come to us."

"Aren't they looking to kill you?"

"Right. Which is why I'm thinking of taking Mew hostage."

Deoxys tensed his whip arm. "M-Mew? You're thinking of kidnapping her?"

Mewtwo nodded. "She'll be easiest for us to take. I'm sure that if I call out for her, she'll come here. And given what I've heard, the other immortals will quickly remove that lock if we promise to release her safely. Maybe they would even hand over one of the Plates in exchange. It's a matter of finding a place close to Hearthome, or this mansion, but not too close. I wonder..."

So far, things had been muddled and Deoxys wasn't sure what he should do. But this was clear cut and he wouldn't be convinced otherwise. "Well I won't be helping you do that."

It was an unexpected refusal, but when he looked to his junior, it seemed to be one made in anger. Then it was just figuring out why he was mad and talking him into the plan. Although, Mewtwo hadn't counted on having to do this. "Why not? We've done things like this before."

"Not kidnapping people."

"Well you haven't been involved directly in that before. But it's no trouble."

"And you're going to take Mew hostage? She's your mother."

"That has nothing to do with this."

He flicked his arm aside with a snap. "It should! I wouldn't kidnap you."

"Of course not."

"So why would you kidnap Mew?"

Mewtwo waved his hand indifferently. "This is different."

"How so?"

"You've been around me your entire life, right? I looked out for you. But she was never there for me. She didn't even have any meaningful connection to me, since I was cloned by a third party. If I kidnapped her, or another immortal, it would be the same."

That didn't seem to work, though. "She still cares about you. She showed up in Hearthome just to check on us and while there, taught us something that helped us out a lot. For that, you should be a little nice to her at least."

It had been an odd time for her to just show up, Mewtwo thought. But it was another incident of her trying to reform him into what she wanted, completely selfish. "She betrayed me, so I could care less what happens to her. But the past isn't important now. We have to settle this dumb issue with these Plates so the other immortals stop pestering us. They are sealed, so we can't tell how powerful they really are. But even with the least of them, they're probably more powerful than us."

As he seemed to be losing ground, Deoxys tried a harsher tactic. "You know, they wouldn't be after you if you did the right thing instead of just whatever you want. Do you even consider how other people are affected by what you do?"

That stung. And unlike the dream sequence, Mewtwo had no one else to blame for Deoxys' words. "These things have to be done. You aren't looking at the entire picture, Deoxys. If we tried going by the rules they set, we won't make any progress on changing the world for centuries. The others like Mew have the power to set everything right, but they've let the humans get too powerful and arrogant. So I don't care what happens to them in the short-term. It'll be worth it in the long term."

"Well I'm still not helping you to kidnap grandma." Deoxys then took off in a sour mood.

Further angered, Mewtwo watched him go. Of all the times he could have an issue with their plans, it had to be now. He couldn't really go chasing after him. Mewtwo was used to teleporting everywhere, so this lock got on his nerves. Given his unnatural half-Pokemon half-human composition, he found walking around awkward. Even with levitation, Deoxys would be faster than him.

In fact, there were signs that his power would exceed Mewtwo's, given time. His strategic thinking was weak at the moment, but his ability to shift his core stats by changing form and the sheer power of those forms would make for a difficult battle, if they were equal in level. Right now, Mewtwo could easily beat him.

"That wouldn't help anything," he muttered, then walked along the border of Backlot's garden. Security lights threw bright patches everywhere, but the night still held shadows to hide him. He could take Mew hostage on his own, but there were a lot of details to think through.

* * *

 

Deoxys found his way to the main route before long. He might have done bad things before, but he hadn't realized it then. Now that he knew that Mewtwo didn't care about anything but his own agenda, Deoxys would make sure that he did the right thing.

Then, what did he do now?

Logically, the first thing would be to warn Mew. Maybe he could ask her why Mewtwo was mad at her. If she knew. Then he could stay with her and learn things Mewtwo didn't know, like about this council of immortals. Or things he had brushed off as not important.

If he were to call Mew, though, he'd want to get further away from here. Maybe back to Hearthome. It would be harder for Mewtwo to act in the populated city. And this route would be faster than roaming about the dark woods.

Deoxys started north. The trees soon took back over, erasing any sign of Backlot's property. However, just ahead of him, he sensed something strange. Not something. Nothing. It was that dark element Mewtwo had been talking about, the one immune to psychic powers. And there was something ahead that was strong in the power of Dark.

Wondering if it was a Plate, Deoxys slowed down as he approached the empty spot in his senses. There was a man standing in the middle of the route, checking his cellphone. He had slick black hair with a classy hint of gray. His black eyes betrayed him as being close to or beyond fifty years. Dressed in a spotless black suit and quality black shoes, he seemed to be out of place on this grassy wooded route. Due to the Dark aura around him, Deoxys couldn't tell much more about this human.

Satisfied with whatever news there was, he flipped the phone shut and turned to him. "Good night for a walk, isn't it Deoxys?"

He drifted forward, puzzled. "How do you know who I am? And who are you?"

He brushed aside a stray piece of hair before answering. "There is information about you out there, although it was difficult to obtain. You may call me Giovanni."

"Okay, Giovanni. I'm sorry, but I'm in a hurry."

"What for?" He glanced aside. "Where is Mewtwo?"

"Mewtwo?" Why did this human want to know about him?

"We go back a long time. I knew him when he was your age. I was surprised to hear that he was working with someone else. He was a fierce advocate of independence and self-sufficiency." He looked back to Deoxys. "So you must be someone special."

Was he a special exception? Or was he just being used, like Heatran said? Whatever it was, Deoxys felt that he had to get to Mew. "I wouldn't know. Pardon me, but..."

"You must leave so soon?" Giovanni released an odd Gardevoir; she had a deformed skirt and an odd aura. But she was within the Dark area, so Deoxys couldn't tell what was off about her. "I've been looking to talk to you for a while."

"I've got something important to take care of."

"Hmm." He stepped back a little. "Michael, trap him."

" _Right away,"_ she replied without enthusiasm. Her eyes flashed with ferocity. An invisible energy shot out from her, tying itself around him.

Deoxys tried to run off, but the energy field tightened around his body painfully. _"Hey, what gives?"_

" _That's Mean Look for you,"_ Michael explained. She brought her arms out, then flung them out, drawing out a pair of long blades along, behind, and in front of her forearms. _"You aren't getting away."_

"I don't take no for an answer," Giovanni said harshly. "From anyone."

"What do you want from me?" Deoxys asked

"I said it before: I want to know more about you. If talking won't do, I have other means of finding out. Michael, Psychic him."

'That isn't going to do ****,' she said telepathically.

"I know."

Rolling her eyes, she struck Deoxys with a flash of mental energy. Seeing that he would have to fight, Deoxys shifted to his Attack form. His first act was to use Flash, causing a blinding light to fill the route for a second. His defenses were a bit weak in this form, so it was best if his opponent couldn't hit him as well. Michael was ordered to use Psychic again; Deoxys darted around and struck her with his twin-whips. It was something he'd been working on while Mewtwo had been recovering, as it seemed like a potentially effective attack.

Giovanni had her keep up the ineffective strategy of Psychic, though, until she had hit him twice with it. "Switch to False Swipe," he ordered.

" _****, I hate that move,"_ Michael muttered as she readied her blades. " _Just let me beat him properly."_ She dashed towards Deoxys and tried to use a backslash at him.

He slipped out of her reach before she could hit him. " _Can't you refuse to fight?"_

" _No, it's the laws of nature. A Pokemon must submit to the one who captured it, or to one who has proof of ability. And this guy, jerk that he is, has that proof."_ She managed to backslash him this time.

It hurt, but not by much. However, he was getting worn. It might be a good idea to swap to Defense form for a while. " _Who made up those laws?"_

Before he could change, she hit him with False Swipe again. _"Our ancestors. It was for the good of us all, or so they thought."_

His training sessions had always been exhausting. But he hadn't thought that a real fight on his own would be this tiring. The cuts she had made hurt sharply and even those few hits of Psychic were giving him a headache. When he tried to slip away, though, the energy from Mean Look kept him there. " _You can't disobey at all?"_

" _Can't. It's in our blood."_ She glowered. " _As much as I hate it..."_

A movement caught Deoxys' eye right before another energy latched onto him. The white energy of a Pokeball tried to swallow him. It was much stronger than the one before. However, he still managed to free himself from it. But if he could escape the Pokeball's pull, why couldn't he beat Mean Look?

Maybe he had to get rid of Michael. _"Sorry, but I have important things to do,"_ Deoxys told her.

" _Don't apologize for a good fight_ ," she told him.

Hearing that, he struck her with Aerial Ace. That didn't quite finish her, but then he had to fight off a second Pokeball. This one had a touch of silver to its energy and was stronger than the last. With a rhythmic intensity, it tightened three times before he managed to break free. He noticed that Michael was outside of the Dark bubble around Giovanni when his vision cleared. One more attack should finish her. However, she held her blades up defensively.

"I should have expected a tough time from a Pokemon of your caliber," Giovanni said, then pulled out a black and gray ball. "But I chose my time carefully." He threw that ball.

The energy of this Pokeball was black, like the moonless sky above. Prepared, Deoxys started fighting it off as soon as it grabbed hold. But this one had suffocating strength. As his vision became black with white specks, he became confused as to whether he was facing down a Pokeball or facing up to the starry sky.

And then he found himself standing in a room of the stone castle he and Mewtwo had lived in. A pair of double doors opened up to a balcony, where a moonless sky with millions of stars hung over the island jungle and still ocean. What had happened? The teleport lock hadn't broken, so...

He heard Giovanni's voice behind him. Deoxys turned and saw a large TV screen. It showed the dark route south of Hearthome and north of Backlot's mansion. Still encompassed by the Dark bubble, the mysterious human stood with the odd Gardevoir-Gallade hybrid. "This should draw Mewtwo out, I'm sure of it."

Deoxys had been captured. He didn't know what to do.

* * *

 

Deoxys was in trouble.

The thought crashed into his mind without warning, as he had been deciding the best way to hold Mew to one location. For a moment, it annoyed and worried him. He hadn't yet reached the level 50 mark Mewtwo had decided on training him to, but Deoxys was capable of holding his own in battle. Plus, after that argument they'd had, Mewtwo wasn't sure he wanted to go to him right away. Might as well let him get himself out of whatever trouble he had gotten into.

But part of his mind grew insistent that he at least check out what was going on. Mewtwo hated having his focus being interrupted, especially by his own mind. As it couldn't hurt to check, he levitated himself and flew in the direction Deoxys had gone.

Two things caught his notice. One was that he couldn't sense Deoxys anywhere nearby. The other was that there was a dead space in his senses. With a bad feeling about the situation, he headed towards the dead space.

In the middle of the open route, he saw Deoxys with Giovanni and Michael the Gallade. The human held onto a black and gray Dusk Ball, a rather devious Pokeball that was most effective in dark areas. The only thing that would be more effective than that on a moonless night would be the infamous Master Ball. However, that one had to be made to agonizingly exact specifications with rare and pricy materials. One slip-up in production and a Master Ball would be rendered useless, an enormous waste of money.

The Dusk Ball was being scanned by a wrist computer. "You are quite impressive," he told Deoxys. "A bit frail for my liking, though."

In his Attack form, Deoxys looked exhausted from a rough battle. He could be knocked clean out in a few blows in that form, Mewtwo recalled, but he could also dish out a massive amount of damage before taken down. "I'm not that bad," he insisted.

"You're not, but you could be better."

On the other hand, Michael looked to be recently healed. Rather annoyed at being held captive, Mewtwo imagined. She gave him a glance, but didn't say anything to Giovanni.

Not that it mattered. "Mewtwo, so kind of you to join us," he called out into the woods. "Come on out of there; I know you'd rather not hide."

"What the heck is with you?" Mewtwo snapped back, coming out onto the route. "Humans shouldn't be able to do half the things I've seen you do."

He had that smug smile, like he had already won the game. It definitely was him. "I know my enemies and would rather be well-equipped in case of unexpected trouble. But I really shouldn't fight you, right?" He pointed towards Mewtwo. "Without proper medical attention to those gunshot wounds, your defenses would still be vulnerable."

Deoxys looked spooked, drifting back into a defensive position. "How do you know about that?"

"I keep tabs on a great many things, child. Like how none of us can teleport right now." The whole time, he kept watching Mewtwo. "I'm not certain of why, but I have a hunch."

Mewtwo didn't let his eyes off his enemy either. "Let go of Deoxys, now."

"Why should I? I caught him properly. Ask your little experiment Gardevoir over here for confirmation."

'I'm a Gallade, get it straight!' Michael snapped.

" _You know each other too?"_ Deoxys asked them.

" _Yes, from Orre,"_ Mewtwo said.

Michael snorted. _"I took him out to the pub and he ditched me halfway through our date."_

" _It was not a date,"_ he replied sharply.

She crossed her arms over her chest indignantly. _"We talked to each other for three hours and I paid for your drinks, so I get to call it a date if I want to. Even if it was a lousy one."_

" _That sounds like a date to me,"_ Deoxys said.

Giovanni raised his eyebrows. "Something up, Mewtwo?"

"No," he grumbled, feeling the tips of his ears warm up in embarrassment.

"It surprises me some that you would try to interfere, but it shouldn't have. You've succumbed to basic Pokemon instinct, Mewtwo. You left before we could perfect you and thus you have this weakness now."

"You ruined me," Mewtwo hissed. "I won't let you do the same to him."

Infuriatingly, he only shrugged. "What can you do about it? Michael here could probably damage you worse than Cyrus did in your current state of health. Besides, I control Deoxys now." He shifted his jacket and brought out a handgun, placing the end of the barrel against the Dusk Ball. "I can do what I want with him."

A blaze of hatred burned through Mewtwo's mind. In any other situation, he would have moved to kill Giovanni. Tonight though, he grew very still. He had used hostages plenty of times in the past, but never had one used against him. Deoxys looked scared, caught in a position where he could do nothing to stop himself from getting killed.

"You wouldn't kill him," Mewtwo said, his mouth feeling dry. "Not when you've just caught him."

"It would be a waste, yes, but you know I don't make threats lightly."

He tried to think this through logically. But, as Giovanni had suggested, his instincts were pressuring him too much. He had to get Deoxys away safely. That left one option, which he should have hated strongly. Instead, once he settled on doing it, he felt relaxed and somewhat relieved. "Why don't you let him go and take me instead?"

"You would rather go with me?" Giovanni asked with false innocence. "I'm flattered, but are you sure?"

"Yes."

"I suppose I could agree with that." He brought out a red and white Pokeball.

"Release him first," Mewtwo insisted. "Or I won't stay put."

"Fine. Michael, make sure he doesn't leave."

'Sure, sure,' she replied, then used Mean Look on him.

Giovanni entered a command into his wrist computer, which instructed the Dusk Ball to release Deoxys. The alien virus hung around a moment longer. _"Mewtwo? Why...?"_

" _Get out of here,"_ he interrupted. _"And stay the hell away from Giovanni and Team Rocket from now on."_

" _I'm sorry."_ He shifted to Speed form, then headed north.

The Pokeball's hold was weak, but Mewtwo allowed it to take him.


	12. Key Items

Deoxys woke up as a ray of the rising sun hit his face. Lying on a peach-colored blanket on a thin mattress, he sat up and saw a row of trees past a number of rooftops. A white curtain cut him off from the rest of the room. Where was he? Right, the Hearthome Pokecenter. When he'd come in late last night, they gave him a strong medicine, then let him sleep up here. As for why he had come in at all...

The events of last night came back in a rush then. He'd made his stand, clashing with Mewtwo and then leaving him. Which should have made him proud. But then he'd been captured by a strange human who possessed the element of Dark, when no human Deoxys had ever known held a Pokemon element. Mewtwo came and let himself be captured so he could get away. And in his warning to stay away, Deoxys could tell that his elder loathed this Giovanni. The human had called it basic Pokemon instinct, but it didn't seem that simple.

Within a few minutes, over a dozen different ideas went through his head. He was supposed to be getting away from Mewtwo's control. But Mewtwo giving himself up to Giovanni was far from a selfish move. Deoxys was warned to stay away from Giovanni and that seemed like a good plan. But maybe he'd thought wrong about being right and he should go rescue Mewtwo. Yet he'd been planning on kidnapping Mew himself, using her much like Giovanni had used Deoxys.

Before his confusion had any chance of clearing, the curtain rings squeaked against the rod. "Excuse me," a quiet voice said. "Are you awake?" It slid aside to reveal one of the Nurse Joy women.

Deoxys looked up at her. "Oh yes, I am. Thank you."

Her eyebrows lifted. "You can speak. Sorry, I just wasn't sure what to expect of you."

"It's fine." He got up and left the sleeping area. "Can I do anything to repay you? I don't have any money, but I can do some chores or something."

"There's no need. It's our duty to help injured Pokemon."

"Any injured Pokemon?" he asked before he could think better of it.

"Yes," she answered, uncertain of why he wanted to know.

"Oh, never mind. Just something I heard about."

"All right. I suppose if you do want to do something, you could spend some time with this girl in the lobby. Her Pokemon is in for a long surgery and I'm too busy to sit with her this morning."

"Okay." It didn't seem like much, but it'd be a nice thing to do.

"Follow me then." She took him out of the recovery room and down a hall to the second floor lobby. There was a round table with a curved couch and some chairs. On the couch, there was a brown haired girl with lots of freckles across her face.

She looked up at them. "How's my Furret?"

"They're still preparing for the operation," Nurse Joy said. "This is Deoxys; he's a very smart Pokemon. Deoxys, this is Lori."

He waved his one hand. "Hi Lori."

Her eyes widened. "You can talk?"

"Um, yeah."

"He doesn't mind staying with you for a while. If anything comes up about your Furret, I'll let you know."

"Okay." She watched the Nurse go back to her duty, then looked up to Deoxys. "Are you waiting for somebody too?"

"Not really," he replied, drifting into one of the chairs. "I'm not sure what to do at the moment."

"What's the matter?"

He wasn't sure how to explain it. The full story was much too long and personal to tell to a stranger. "Just my father," he said. "We had an argument yesterday and now I don't know where he is."

"Does your father love you?"

"I guess," he said, thinking of what had happened.

"I suppose you ought to help him, if you can."

"If I can find him. What are you doing?"

She looked down at a plastic box divided into many compartments. Hundreds of beads were in and out of the box. A few bottles of paint were also on the table. "I'm making charm bracelets to pass the time. Want to make one too?"

"I'll try." He held out his twin-whip arm. "I might be dexterous enough."

Lori giggled. "Okay, we'll see."

* * *

 

Either Team Rocket had changed since Mewtwo last dealt with them or this wasn't one of their facilities. There was an awful lot of silvertone with blue going on in the interior decorating. To be honest, it was much like a spaceship in an old sci-fi movie: fluid lines on every surface, star charts on the walls, all devices transformed from bulky to sleek. He wondered who was trying to impress who.

There were a pair of humans in the room. One sat at a semi-circle console while the other leaned against it lazily. "Why've we got to do what that old man says?"

"Master Cyrus says we should obey Giovanni for now," the one at the console said. "Unless it conflicts with a prior order, of course."

"Hmph. And what's with his warning to keep close guard on his Pokemon?"

"Maybe because one of them is known as a killer?" Mewtwo interrupted.

"That's farfetched, don't you think?" But then he saw the man behind the console get knocked back by Psychic and killed. Before his frantic mind could decide on escaping or fighting, Mewtwo killed him as well.

Aren't they just statistics to you as well? What about the ones who loved the people you killed?

These were just grunts, he reminded himself. After setting the bodies aside, he sat down at the console. It was still logged in to the guard's account. Some quick data work gave him top privileges into the system.

First, he searched out information on Deoxys. There were a number of public sightings and recordings; that was a constant hazard of his chosen path. He didn't find the information Giovanni had gotten off the Dusk Ball, though. That had a specific format and would be readily recognizable. So he hadn't put it into the Galactic system. Yet he was using their lab?

He probably didn't want to risk his own people, Mewtwo decided. Or he was making a move on a takeover of their organization. He scowled at the thought that he was helping Giovanni's plans simply by being here. Deciding to change his research subject, he searched for what information Galactic had from Rocket.

From the result of ten pages of links, Giovanni had given them a decent amount of information. Not all that he had, Mewtwo was certain. Probably not even all that he knew about his nemesis. Skimming along, he saw 'Cinnabar Research Lab Data' as an option. He clicked on that, just to see.

The files looked impressive, but Mewtwo quickly dismissed it as near useless. The poor organization of information and sketchiness of experiment descriptions rendered it difficult to understand. Far from a decent scientific report, it was unacceptable. He was tempted to search something else, but then there was an option he hadn't expected to see. 'Information on the captive: Mew'

"Mew? What the heck? I don't remember her being there." Despite expecting a worthless article like the rest, he checked on it.

* * *

 

The bracelet Deoxys came up with had a dozen star charms on it, all in different metallic colors. There was also a large round white bead that he had painted blue and green, so it resembled the Earth. "The band's made out of elastic, so it stays on wherever you put it," Lori told him. "At least, it should. You've got weird arms."

"It might," he said, latching it onto the upper part of his twin whip arm. The bracelet stayed there when he let go.

"You can keep it," she added.

"Thanks." It made him remember some things with Mewtwo. He hadn't done anything bad to Deoxys, but it might have been just a matter of time.

He felt like someone he knew had just seen him. It was Mew, he soon determined, and it was confirmed when her human form wrapped her arms around. "Deoxys! There you are."

Clasping her hand, he looked up at her. She looked different this time, more like a pink-haired woman that anybody would be comfortable calling Mother. "Here I am. Sorry Lori, but I have to leave."

"It's okay," she said with a smile. "Thanks for hanging out with me."

"Sure. And I hope your Furret gets better quick."

"You have a good day," Mew said to the girl before leading Deoxys away. Then she spoke in a hushed voice. "Where's Mewtwo? I took my eyes off you two for a few hours and you were both gone."

"You were watching us?" he asked quietly.

"While he's been recovering from those gunshot wounds. Let's go up to the rooftops; we can talk more freely up there."

They left the Pokecenter and slipped into an alleyway so Mew could drop her Guise. They flew up and over to the Contest Hall roof. As they looked for a hidden spot, Deoxys felt a growing anxiety. What should he tell her? It was usually best to tell the truth... but when it involved taking her hostage?

"Now where is he?" Mew repeated.

"I don't know," he admitted. "He got captured last night by someone named Giovanni."

"HIM?"

Deoxys slid back, startled at her tone. "Um, that's what he said his name was. Caucasian human, black hair, black suit... I guess he was fifty or sixty, somewhere in there."

"Dammit. How did that happen? Mewtwo would kill that bastard on sight if he had his way."

"Um, a lot of things happened last night. That's why I was in the Pokecenter."

She floated over to him and patted his shoulder. "Just tell me what happened. I'm sure you didn't do anything wrong."

So he told her all that happened last night, including the plan to kidnap her. She listened attentively, occasionally asking for a few details on something. Then she thought on it silently for a minute.

"This is all really confusing me," Deoxys said, feeling awkward. "I thought I was doing right by not going along with him. But then he came back to rescue me."

"You hit your adolescent phase, that's part of it," Mew explained. "You're thinking for yourself and making your own judgments, which is good." Then she crossed her arms, making her tail swing steadily, like a clock. "I'm not bothered by him wanting to take me hostage. It's wrong for him to do so, yes, but I would have used the opportunity well. And you've obviously helped him."

"I've helped him?"

She nodded. "He's distrusted love as a misguided or false emotion. He never let anybody get close to him until you came along. I've always thought that that was major part of his problems. I did my best, but he rejected my love early on."

"He did seem awful mad at you. Why is that?"

"Well he thinks that I should have been capable of rescuing him from Giovanni's scientists and that I chose to do nothing. Truth is, I was held captive at the same lab. I was captured months prior when I teased a Trainer. The scientists kept me in a separate area of the lab and did their best to hide us from each other."

"So you were both there and you didn't know it?"

"I knew it. I was experienced enough to read the situation from minuscule clues. Mewtwo wasn't. So I know exactly what happened to him. I felt his pain." She looked downcast, thinking over some deep sorrow. "But when I finally met him face to face, he rejected me completely."

Deoxys wasn't sure what to say. He could tell she kept this sorrow hidden, but now that she revealed it, it gripped his soul. Trying to be somewhat comforting, he touched her head. "Grandma..."

Oddly enough, she smiled. "I had a lot of hope for you after our first meeting. I thought if he had someone around who loved him unconditionally, anyone, it would teach him that love is real. Maybe he's starting to accept that. Some others have said that I'm just beating my head against a wall with him, but I believe there must be some good in him. Or maybe I'm just selfishly trying to get him to accept me."

"I don't feel selfishness from you," Deoxys said.

"That's good." She looked up. "I'll see to that teleport lock, and then I'm going after him. I don't care what he thinks of me; I'm not letting him stay under the control of that human again."

"I'll come with you," he offered. "I miss him, actually. And he's my father, so I should help."

"All right," Mew said. "Once that lock stops interfering, I should be able to dowse Mewtwo's location. But you must know that the Rockets Giovanni commands are dangerous opponents. They don't respect Pokemon and will try to capture us."

"But we have to rescue him soon."

"Of course."

* * *

 

Mew's file was interesting. Giovanni had paid a foreign Trainer a lot of money in exchange for her about a year prior to his first datable memory. In the leader's battle observations, he noted that she was cleverer and more powerful than a typical Pokemon of her level, which had been sealed at an embarrassingly low 10. But she wasn't what he desired. Not only was her potential too low for Giovanni's bar, but she also dodged the respect obedience for experienced Trainers.

Did that mean he could also dodge that respect obedience? It was one of the points Mewtwo most hated about mankind. If he could find a way to pass that immunity on to other powerful Pokemon, it would be a huge step towards overthrowing that cruel race. However, since Giovanni captured him, there was no way to test that now.

In the behaviors section, it showed that she had been depressed for a good portion of her captivity period. 'It is easy enough to control an angered Pokemon,' one of the notes said. 'Enforce your authority and redirect its rage at another source. If the Pokemon's mind can be clouded enough by anger, a firm voice can get it to do nearly anything. On the other hand, a depressed Pokemon is difficult to control. It will refuse to do anything and a strong authority might worsen the situation. It is also difficult and time-consuming to pull the Pokemon out of its depression.' That certainly was written by Giovanni.

The records showed that Mew had been held for around five years. If she had been captured a year before he could remember, that put her escape at the same time as his. So she was right. There had been nothing she could do.

He grumbled a bit, but not as much as he expected of himself. He didn't like admitting that Mew was right. On this, though, he wasn't sure what to think.

There were a few videos of what she was capable of. One drew him, so he let it play. It opened up an old security recording. Mew was in a force field, one he knew all too well. One of the scientists was with her. It didn't matter who the glasses-wearing... no, wait, he remembered that particular human. According to the time on the tape, he wouldn't be alive in another five hours.

"Hey Ian," Mew said.

The scientist with blue glasses turned to her. "Yes, what is it?"

"May I go see Mewtwo?"

For a moment, he was flustered by her request. "W-who are you talking about?"

She giggled. "You know who I'm talking about. I know you do. May I go see him?"

"Well we were asked to keep you separated," Ian replied hesitantly. "You aren't even supposed to know of him."

"I know he's here," she insisted. "I suppose it's some maternal instinct. Your building may block most Psychic senses, but I can feel strong emotions from him."

"He was cloned from you, not born."

"Well I don't care how it works or what you may think. He's just a kid with an immense potential right now and you wouldn't know how to train him properly in it. I want to see for myself that he's okay, make sure we know each other, and possibly train him if you'll allow it. Pleeease help me?"

"I don't know..." he glanced away from Mew, worried about something.

"But you have kids, don't you Ian? You'll help me see my son, right?"

"That's part of why I can't, Mew," he replied, looking back to her. "Our sponsor seems to be more and more dangerous the more I hear from him. I don't want to do anything that'll put my family at risk."

"I can help you with that. Please let me just see him? I'm supposed to be the mother of everybody, but I've never actually been one directly. It would be best if we could just leave... I'd protect you then, I promise. Please help me?"

"Mew..."

She moved as close to the force field as she could without getting zapped. "I feel it whenever he is afraid or lonely. And I feel something ominous hanging over us all. I need to get him out of here now, but I can't do that alone. You save my child and I'll make sure nothing happens to yours. Please?"

Ian was quiet for a little while. Apparently he felt something wasn't right either. "I'll think on it," he told her, then left the room. The video ended.

So that was his name, Ian. And that explained what all happened that afternoon. Still, what was she complaining about? If he had been scared or lonely back then, it was nothing compared to later on when...

He thought for a moment, what would it be like if he was caught in that situation with Deoxys?

"****," Mewtwo grumbled, putting his head against his hand. The worst he'd dealt with was that sudden knowledge that he had been captured. But the fact that he had felt that meant that he might feel other connections.

He heard footsteps in the hall outside. The steel construction of this place blocked most of his senses, so he couldn't be sure who was coming. Closing the research windows, Mewtwo brought up a map of the base. What should he do now? Looking at it, the Galactic base was fairly secure. He wouldn't be able to break out of here without drawing a lot of attention. And there were all kinds of traps within the building; it even had a handy self-destruct sequence in case of a worst case scenario.

The door slid open, letting Giovanni inside. Not even giving the dead guards a glance, he watched Mewtwo behind the console. "That didn't take you long, did it?"

Silent, Mewtwo watched him. The enforced obedience of the Pokeball worked even when it wasn't in the Trainer's hands. While he could make the most elaborate and foolproof of escape plans, it would mean nothing if Giovanni simply told him to stop.

It is easy enough to control an angered Pokemon... it is difficult to control a depressed Pokemon.

Mewtwo considered letting oneself fall into depression a major weakness. There was nothing strong about moping about and crying. And that note had been written over thirty years ago. Perhaps he had found a way of control. Or maybe Mewtwo had found a strange way to retain control.

Giovanni went back to where he had set his Pokeballs aside. Apparently he had to meet with someone and didn't want to have certain incriminating Pokemon (like Mewtwo and Michael) on him. "Cyrus, your grunts really need to learn more respect."

"Don't tell me how to run..." he stopped mid-sentence as he entered the room and noticed the bodies. The Galactic leader looked at Mewtwo.

Mewtwo looked at the console's screen. This was going to be difficult for him to pull off. But if he did, he could possibly infuriate and frustrate Giovanni. That would make it all worthwhile. His mind drifted back to the security video of Mew and Ian.

"I told them that the ones I was leaving were potentially dangerous," the Rocket leader said calmly. "If they had followed my suggestions, they would still be alive."

"Why are you even using my facility for this research? Your own should be suitable."

Because your grunts are more expendable than his, Mewtwo thought and nearly said. But he clamped down on it. Giovanni knew how to control him when he was angry. He knew that control so well that he got Mewtwo without a fight. Now wasn't the time for those thoughts. Now was... this was unfamiliar ground for him, trying to purposely make himself depressed. There had been a time or two before when he had gotten depressed, but he'd always forced himself out of it. What would work?

Remember how Deoxys had lost faith. Maybe he had earned it back with the trade; maybe not. There wasn't any way to know now. And Deoxys had been right about something that night. He really shouldn't be as nasty to Mew as he was.

"You have the best working equipment that I have access to," Giovanni told Cyrus. "There's been some issues with my science labs." He snapped his fingers. "Mewtwo."

Don't get angry.

He narrowed his eyes. "Mewtwo, come here."

For a moment, he thought of making himself stay at the console as a tension from the Pokeball's programming tried to make him obey. But that was fighting it and it wouldn't work. He needed to more or less give up on doing anything. Once he did, the tension from the programming seemed to vanish.

It wasn't freedom, though, as all the thoughts he had shoved aside poured into his mind and crushed him.

* * *

 

Deoxys paced around a secret base hidden in a cliff side. Overhead, there was a public airport. When helicopters and planes took off from the base, the casual observer couldn't tell them from the public transports. This was where Mew had located Mewtwo after breaking the anti-teleport lock.

She had told him to stake out the location while she went after some supplies. While he hadn't been able to get a good look inside the base, she had, and had given him a mental map of the place. Deoxys watched who came and went, as well as tried to sneak a look inside. But every time he came close, he got a feeling he was too close to the security equipment.

In the evening, Mew returned. "Anything big happen?"

"No. But I've got a bad feeling about Mewtwo."

"It feels like he's depressed to me. That's going to complicate things. But we're going to break him out of here."

He nodded. "Yes." Then he looked to her. "Where's all your things?"

"Sub-space pockets. Very handy skill to know. Now, I've considered how to break into this place."

"Are we going to sneak in?"

Her tail twitched. "I thought about it, but no. I feel like busting up the place, guns blazing. Galactic's pretty bad on their own; working with Giovanni is that much worse."

"Do we have guns?"

"No, but I redid my seal from level 10 up to level 255. Follow me." She flew over to one of the helicopter entrances. Deoxys felt the presence of the security cameras. In response, Mew shot out lightning bolts at them. Galactic's security could no longer see them.

Deoxys followed Mew into the base. She took care of most everything, summoning flames, more thunderbolts, even an earthquake. Just as he was going to ask what to do, she turned to him.

"Okay, we're enough in that you should be able to find him. I'll keep their attention on me. Go get Mewtwo and use this on him." She tossed him a device that looked like a cross between a calculator and a remote control. "Once you've got him free, either get out of here with him or both of you come fight with me. Whatever he feels like."

"Sure." He opened his senses and went further into the Galactic base.

Every now and then, he'd hear a blast or boom from Mew's efforts. The base personnel were frantic, trying to stop her, capture her, or just scare her away. Deoxys was able to sense them coming and slip into rooms to wait unnoticed. It was like a game of hide and seek. A very dangerous game.

But two levels down and past three hallways, he located where Mewtwo was being held. It was a small room, almost like it should have been a bathroom. There was a force field cutting off a five foot by five foot section; he was behind this.

Deoxys came in. "Mewtwo, there you are."

He looked up from where he was sitting on the floor. "Deoxys?"

"I'm sorry about arguing and running off," he said, dropping down in front of the force field. "I was thinking about stuff; I'm still a bit confused."

"I've been thinking too. I've been stuck in here for a whole day, so can't do anything but think. I made Giovanni mad but... I don't know... you shouldn't apologize to me."

His mind was a wandering muddle, Deoxys realized. That, and his chest was still damaged, so he wasn't going to help much with Mew's fight. "How do I get rid of this force field?

"It's..." he squinted off at the console.

He had to do this on his own. He turned to the console and looked it over. On the screen, there was a display of an electrical circuit operating the force field. He'd just have to break the circuit. After observing it, he found a switch. It was on the wall too, so he tried to flip that switch with telekinesis. Something blocked his mental touch. In that case, he floated over and flipped it manually. The force field shut off.

Deoxys returned to Mewtwo and looked at the device Mew had given him. After pressing 'scan', he got the option to 'break electro-genetic bond'. He wasn't sure what that meant, but picked to do that anyhow. The device emitted a white beam of light, like the Pokeball's energy. For a minute, it surrounded Mewtwo. Then it vanished. 'Bond broken' reported the screen.

"I think that freed you. Come on, we've got to leave."

"Yeah." He got up as a loud crash came from upstairs. "What's going on?"

"Mew's distracting the Galactic forces."

"Mew huh?"

"Yeah. Oh, hey." He unlatched the bracelet from around his arm and offered it to Mewtwo. "Here, I made this, thinking of you. I might not quite agree with you, but I did miss you a lot."

Mewtwo took it, looking at it thoughtfully. "It looks kind of like the world."

"It's not that great, but it's hard painting something that small when you only have one hand." Deoxys smiled. "Maybe you want to rule the world, but I can't give that to you. You can have that world if you want though, and rule it all you like."

After a short laugh, Mewtwo smiled back. "Deoxys, that is a horrible joke. But I'll forgive the bad comedy." He put the bracelet on his left arm and teleported to the doorway. "Come on, we can't let Mew have all the fun."

"Sure thing."

* * *

 

Extra: Key Item: Blue Sphere Charm

Description: It looks like some kid painted it…

Effect: Boosts the Special Attack and Special Defense of Mewtwo and Deoxys when equipped.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Remember Mewtwo's fuss about hating Key or boosting items a while back? I figure that the reason things like that work is more psychological than physical. Like this Blue Sphere Charm works because it holds meaning for the both of them. Which leads to dozens of plot bunnies about real boosting items.
> 
> Level 255 Mew is scary.


	13. The Mask of the Original One

In one of the hangers of the Galactic base, a battle taking place. It was one small Pokemon vs twenty grunts, mixed between Galactic and Rocket, with close to seventy Pokemon. There were guns in the walls firing lasers, because someone had decided bullets weren't spacey enough for this secret base. And some of the attack helicopters were trying to maneuver around to attack the invader. The outcome was quite obvious: Mew was going to wipe the floor of all of them.

"Well ****," Mewtwo called into the hanger. "I didn't take you for the overkill type."

The level 255 Mew paused, bringing her weaponry back. Floating around her was one giant shiny broadsword, two rapiers, one cutlass, one katana, twelve throwing knives, twelve throwing stars, one butcher knife, and one spiked mace. "What, you think adding the butcher knife was too much?" she asked.

"Where'd you get all those blades?" Deoxys asked as the two of them came over to join her.

A laser fired directly at Mew. Without glancing at it, she swung the broadsword around to deflect the beam into an Aggron that was trying to bum rush her. "I called in a bunch of favors. But this thing," she swung the broadsword back, "is close to useless. You'd do more damage just bludgeoning someone's head with it. I'm only keeping it out because the nice polish deflects lasers."

Snapping his fingers, Mewtwo called up Earthquake to hit everybody that wasn't up in the air with them. "So are they out of backup yet?"

Mew followed up with a rain of stones covering the entire air dock except a circle around the three of them. "I think I'm close to that. Don't strain yourself with those old injuries."

"I know."

A door in the back opened, letting in one man. "You all get out of here," Giovanni said. "You're clearly no match for them. I'll handle this."

"Yes sir," a couple of the Rockets said, and left. The Galactics decided to follow suit.

"Oh, so the old jerk-face finally decides to show up," Mew said sharply. "About time."

"Mew, it's been years since we've seen each other and this is how you greet me?" He shook his head. "You've become venomous."

"You have no idea," she replied, throwing the ninja stars at him.

Although her aim was flawless, Giovanni brought his hand up and diverted them. There was a device in his hand that looked like a small flashlight, wired up to a metal wrist band like the one Cyrus had. He flicked a switch and set off a ghastly wail accompanied by a pulse of black light. At once, the three Pokemon cringed in pain. It felt something like worms burrowing through their brains.

"It doesn't matter how powerful you are," Giovanni said coolly, walking closer to them. "Mono-type teams are flawed; I learned that long ago. And human technology has now exceeded Pokemon magic, if you pardon my expression. Your best option is to submit now and spare yourselves the torment I will put you under if you fight."

Mewtwo pulled back, bringing his arms in defensively. Apparently the wailing device was irritating his chest wounds. Mew flung Air Slash at him while Deoxys darted in. The viral Pokemon whipped the device out of Giovanni's hand, ending the awful wail. While he was down there, Mew sent the butcher knife at the human's neck.

To his surprise, Deoxys caught a thought from Giovanni while the human was deflecting the knife. 'She will die painfully. I was supposed to keep both Mewtwo and Galactic, while getting Deoxys back. But then she had to inter...' Giovanni then brushed down his hair and Deoxys couldn't hear him anymore.

He went back to his family. _'I've got it! His wig is blocking us.'_

' _He's wearing a wig?_ ' Mew asked.

' _It moved when you hit him with that Flying attack. I saw something that looked shiny and white under his hair and I could sense his thoughts for a bit.'_

' _It's opal,'_ both Mew and Mewtwo realized at once. Mewtwo went on. _'Opal is a gemstone which has some qualities of the Dark type. If it's refined and shaped properly, it can be made to block Psychic, Ghost, Poison, and Dark powers, rendering any mental manipulation useless.'_

' _But in order to make that much of a protective field around him,'_ Mew mused, ' _there has to be an awful lot of opal under his hair.'_

' _I thought he was just bald,'_ Deoxys thought back. ' _But it did look like a stone of some kind.'_

Mew snatched back her butcher knife. _'Deoxys, you're the most physically oriented of us. Get back in there and knock his wig off. Then he'll be at our mercy. Or rather, our lack of mercy.'_

' _All right.'_ As Mew covered for him with another attack and blade barrage, he darted in to wait for an opening. The human's response, though, was to call his weapon back by telekinesis, dodge to the side, hook the device back up, then to use a more directed blast at Deoxys.

It went from worms burrowing in his brain to demonic worms eating his body. Recoiling, he screamed and thought he would black out. But then Mewtwo sent a stronger Aeroblast at Giovanni.

'They know,' Giovanni thought, then teleported up to a doorway three stories up. He gave them a second's look, then left the hanger.

The other two came down to him. "Deoxys, are you okay?" Mew asked.

"I still feel like something's attacking inside of me," he replied with a grimace.

Mewtwo watched the third floor doorway hatefully for a moment. Then he turned to the other two. "Let's get out of here."

"You're not gonna go after him?" Mew asked.

"Later, he will suffer. But we'd best leave while we're all alert."

Mew smiled. "Right."

Before they got out, an alarm began blaring from the speakers. Deoxys cried out in pain, causing Mewtwo to take hold of him and hurry him out. "Self destruct sequence has been activated," a computerized voice announced. "Five minutes until destruction."

"Did you start the self-destruct program?" Mewtwo asked Mew.

"No," she replied, putting her blades away. "I didn't even know there was one."

The three of them took off across the moonlit ocean. At finding a large buoy, they stopped to let Deoxys rest until his mind cleared from Giovanni's attack. A number of helicopters and planes left the base, some barely before a large red fireball erupted from the dark cliff side.

"Installing a self-destruct sequence is a massive waste of money," Mewtwo observed. "It's just asking for your place to get blown to smithereens."

"Yeah, it's better to invest in making sure that your secret base stays secret," Mew added.

"What do you know about secret bases?"

"Nobody's ever found mine." She looked off towards the land. "Uh-oh."

Before they could ask, Entei, Raikou, and Suicune raced out towards them. They stopped on the surface of the water and stood there as easily as they did on dry land. "Caught you in the act this time," Raikou stated.

He rolled his eyes. "As much as I'd like to claim it, that explosion was not my doing."

"It wasn't," Mew stated.

"Mew!" A brilliantly colored bird descended on the opposite side of the three beasts. Ho-oh shook her head. "You said that you weren't working with him."

"I wasn't before today," Mew hissed, summoning back the katana. "But I'm sick and tired of doing nothing while all the rest of you are trying to kill my son!"

"Be reasonable," Suicune said.

"No, you be reasonable. I'm not letting you kill him for no good reason."

"We had a trial," Raikou said.

"What trial?" Mewtwo asked. "I received no summons, never heard a word about it until you showed up to execute me. I didn't even know there was a legal system among Pokemon."

"He does have a point," Entei said, getting a look from his siblings.

"True," Ho-oh added. "In that case, we're forced to arrest you for a second trial. I'm sorry, but that means all of you since you two are in clear connection to his crimes."

"He did not blow up that place," Mew insisted. "But fine. Arrest us if you must."

The other legendaries looked to Mewtwo skeptically. But he crossed his arms over his chest. "Well then you'd better do a **** good job of this. I studied law."

* * *

 

They were at a Rocket base now. Cyrus looked over his four commanders. "Who activated the self-destruct sequence?" he asked them, as calmly as ever. "We agreed that it would not be set off without agreement between at least three of us."

"The order appears to have come from an account of a dead member," Jupiter answered. "Mewtwo hacked it to have the same level of access as you."

"So it came from Mewtwo. You did take care of him as Giovanni suggested?"

"Yes sir," Saturn answered. "Top level force field with guarded circuitry and a deflecting switch. One of our best guards was set to watch that hallway."

"And where is he?"

"Dead. He got poisoned by one of Mew's blades and was caught in the explosion."

"It seems that you've been decimated by Mew," Giovanni said, unexpectedly standing by the door.

The other four jumped; a couple even went to release their Pokemon. But Cyrus wouldn't give Giovanni that satisfaction. "Can't you ever knock?' he asked.

"It's my base we're in," he reminded them. "I'll be where I want to be when I want to be. I've come to tell you that your organization, Team Galactic, is now fully part of Team Rocket."

"I haven't signed anything stating that you could do that," Cyrus said, subconsciously letting his commanders know to be quiet and let him handle this.

Giovanni gave him a smug smile. "Maybe not today, but in the past you gave me permission. It's all in the records, in the paperwork. If it's not legal, I'll make it so. My debtors never escape. Just ask Greevil."

* * *

 

Mew, Mewtwo, and Deoxys were in a secluded meadow. The rectangular area of grass was surrounded by large pine trees. On a small rise in the center, there was a large rock. Overhead, the sky was a perfect cloudless blue. "This is your prison?" Deoxys asked.

"It's a completely enclosed space," Mew explained. "You have to stay here. If you leave going right, you'll come back in on the left in less than a minute. And trust me, this place gets boring quickly. It's so stagnant that even Grass-types can't stand being in here for long."

"Oh well... in that case, I'll just sleep."

"That's probably for the best," Mewtwo said, sitting on the rock. Deoxys then drifted off to the trees and slept under one.

It was quiet in the meadow prison for a long time. Mew passed time by playing with the pine needles. On the rock, Mewtwo had gone back to sorting out his thoughts. That had to be done soon or else he wouldn't be prepared to handle a trial. But part of that included talking to Mew.

An hour after they were sent to this area, Mew flew up to him. "So, whatcha want to talk about?"

He didn't bother asking how she knew; that was a waste of time. "Why do you keep yourself sealed at level 10? It must have been pretty simple to capture you."

"People notice power, even those not sensitive to the hidden signs. The max sealed level is 255, because theoretically a mortal Pokemon can reach that level. But so few make it past 100 that everyone assumes that 100 is the max level. When I'm at 10, hardly anyone takes notice of me."

"But that puts you at risk."

Mew laughed. "That's why I make sure I'm tricky to find. I can still put up a good fight against a Pokeball. But if I decide it might be fun to go with somebody, I'll let the Trainer catch me."

Mewtwo frowned at her. "I assume you weren't expecting to get sold to a power-hungry jerk."

That made her turn serious. "Yeah, that was unexpected. I'm sorry about that."

"What about precognition? Or do you not have that skill?"

"I have precognition. It's just..." she flipped her tail around and took hold of it. "It's an imprecise art. Sometimes you feel a dark cloud on the horizon, and it stays there for years and years, making you anxious all the while. And other times, you see the clouds before the rain, but the storm is practically on top of you and you get caught in preparation. I've never known anybody with precognition who could accurately predict anything. It's always just a feeling of unease."

"Like with Ian? I saw a video of you in the Rocket's files."

She smiled. "Oh, did you know him? He was a good man. Not the best, but good. I never knew what happened to him, though. He vanished without a word one day."

"He got killed when he was trying to convince me to leave the lab with him," he told her, reluctant but feeling she should know. "I was connected to his mind at the time."

Her shock was apparent, and he didn't try to convince himself that it was faked. "Mewtwo..." She came closer and patted him. When that wasn't rebuked, she hugged him.

* * *

 

Cresselia brought up a wooden gavel with telekinesis and pounded the desk with it. "Quiet, everyone! This special session of the Immortals Council will now begin."

In the stage area of the council room, Deoxys felt awed at the powers brought together. The room was immense, made of stone and steel, lit by glowing crystals that put floodlights to shame. It had to be immense, as some of the legends in the room with them were giants. In front of them, the smaller immortals sat in a long booth with microphones so the larger ones could hear them. Cresselia had a secretary's desk on the left side of the stage, while Deoxys, Mewtwo, and Mew were in the center.

Mewtwo had been shut into a wooden pen, the top of which came up to his chest. While he could have easily levitated or teleported out, he stayed put. The reason had to be because all of the others had removed their power seals. In this space, there were no mortals to worry about. It worried Deoxys. Any one of the others could crush them easily.

"The last meeting took place seven months ago. The minutes were taken by Kyogre... you made the pen bleed all over your notes."

"Sorry," a large blue whale said.

"We agreed to find something for Pokemon stuck in PC stasis to do and a possible way for them to escape. Then we reviewed the actions of Mewtwo and chose to have him executed. Entei, Raikou, and Suicune were chosen for the job, then the meeting was adjourned."

"And you only managed to capture him?" a ghoulish figure asked.

"No thanks to you," Suicune retorted. "You hardly helped."

He smiled a crooked smile. "At least I did something."

Cresselia hit the gavel once. "Let's keep order, people. This purpose of this meeting... oh, we haven't done a roll call in some time."

There were a few groans. "Can't we wait another time?" someone asked.

"I know it's a pain, but we've got to keep our records straight and we haven't had full attendance in decades. Let me see." She shuffled through some files.

Deoxys drifted over to lean on Mewtwo's pen. "I didn't know there were so many powerful Pokemon in the world," he whispered.

Mewtwo leaned over and whispered back, "It's almost four dozen compared to the potential thousand primal souls that were hands of the Original One. Still, I didn't know there were this many active." He touched the small globe hung around his arm. "I'm not afraid, though. You're safe, and that's what matters."

He smiled. Once he had rested, he felt much better. And Mewtwo's chest injuries looked better too. Apparently Mew had done something to reduce the outer scars to little more than dark patches on his skin.

Cresselia found the book she wanted and opened it up. "Okay... Arceus the Mask."

"Bzzzzz... zzzzz... zzzzz..." came the reply from a graceful white quadruped that was curled up on the floor. The golden halo emitted from around her waist shifted back and forth slowly.

"Sleeping..." Cresselia noted, writing on the roll call sheet. "But level 9999. Mew the Mother of All."

"Same level," she replied, hovering close to the two of them.

"Okay... Celebi the Watcher of Time."

She giggled from the booth. "I was fighting a weed infestation," she said airily. "Um, level 504."

"You sure you weren't smoking the weeds?" Cresselia asked as she took notes. "Darkrai the Antagonist."

"666," he replied.

She glowered at him. "That's not the truth."

The ghoul made an exaggerated sigh. "Fine, but only because you're sexy. Level 5517."

Celebi giggled again.

"Uxie the Entity of Intelligence."

"Level 215," he replied.

"You guys picked a spectacularly bad time to reset your levels," a booming voice came from the giant's section. The speaker was covered in black armor plates and all too eerie.

"Shut up, Giratina," Uxie replied. "We're not perfect visionaries. How were we to know those Galactics would cause that much trouble?"

Cresselia banged the gavel down. "Order, people."

"Artichoke pizza!" Celebi shouted out, then laughed.

She continued the roll call, often having the interrupt herself to keep arguments from breaking out. Frowning, Mewtwo glanced over at Mew. "How in hell do you guys manage to get anything done?" he whispered.

She glanced around, then replied quietly, "Most of the time, I don't bring stuff up at council meetings until something is done. And this is a pretty big meeting; normally there's only a handful of attendees."

"Nice to know they consider me that big of a threat," he said sarcastically.

After that business got done, Cresselia set aside the attendance book and brought up a different file. "All right then, the main agenda of this meeting is the trial of Mewtwo."

"Which is what you should have done in the last meeting instead of deciding on his sentence without him," Mew said sharply.

"We couldn't get him to the last meeting," Raikou said.

"The charges will be read by Rayquaza," Cresselia stated. "Proceed."

"Thank you." A great green serpent slithered to the side of the booth opposite Arceus. "According to the laws of nature, which have evolved through human-Pokemon relations over thousands of years, a Pokemon may not kill a human unless it is through accident, extreme need, or a reaction to extreme abuse. While some of the murders by Mewtwo's hands have come about as a reaction to extreme abuse, he has gone excessively far in murdering humans that had no connection whatsoever to his abusers. He has also committed crimes of theft, kidnapping, carjacking, fraud, property damage, conspiracy to overthrow reigning governments, and about a thousand other minor charges as listed in the records of the council."

"Whose law are you going by?" Mewtwo asked, pounding his pen with his fist. "And why would Pokemon government have a law concerning cars? Most of you can't drive human vehicles."

"Well not normally," Mespirit said playfully.

"Mespirit!" her brothers exclaimed. She simply smiled in response.

"Pokemon on a human level of intelligence must follow human law," Jirachi said. "That was what we decided on."

"Why?" Mewtwo demanded. "I bet none of you had any hand in the making of those laws."

"It's the unwritten Pokemon law," Jirachi said.

"How am I supposed to know about those laws if they're unwritten? It's not imprinted on us."

"Actually, they are," Cresselia stated. "Uxie, Azelf, and Mespirit helped make those laws and thus every Pokemon after them knows them."

He looked at Mew. "Were you created before or after them?"

"Before," she replied.

"Well then there's no way I could know those laws," he pointed out. "I was a direct copy of her at one point."

"Nevertheless, you broke those laws and now must be punished under the terms of ordinary Pokemon."

"Why must I be tried as an ordinary Pokemon? I'm on your level."

"No you're not," Cresselia said, shaking the gavel at him. "We have no proof that you are."

"But you have no proof that he isn't either," Mew replied in a huff.

"Look, why don't you ask Arceus for the Plate she's holding and find out if he's part of the thousand?" Darkrai interrupted.

"How do you know that she's holding a Plate?" Cresselia asked back. "She's been sleeping the whole time."

"I wish I could sleep that peacefully in the presence of Darkrai," Azelf grumbled.

In response to Cresselia's comment, Arceus lifted her head up. "!" she screeched in perfect imitation of a late summer cicada.

Darkrai pointed to her. "Couldn't have said it better myself. Give them the Insect Plate."

To the mutterings of the others, Arceus got up and shook herself awake. An army green plate was attached to the lower part of her halo; apparently she'd been sleeping on top of it. She detached it and padded over to Mewtwo to hand it over.

He took it and looked it over. There was nothing on it right now, but it had an aura like a busy hive or an active swarm gathered for protection. Uncertain of it there was a certain format to this, he asked, "Do I have a title of one of the thousand?"

The Plate responded by glowing white. It formed script in the form of the Unown. While he could translate that perfectly well, Arceus began speaking in a clear feminine voice. "Mewtwo the Inquisitor: One who questions flawed ideas. When faith in the thousand runs low, the Inquisitor comes to punish the faithless. It is cunning, ruthless, and powerful, but is called in to restore balance."

"What?" several of them asked, shocked that he had been named one of them. Lugia leaned in forward and added, "That can't be right. It doesn't sound like something one of the thousand would be called to do."

"You all said the same thing when I received my title," Darkrai said, smiling smugly at the group. "We don't know all of the mysteries of the Original One."

"But that sounds like we're being called to war," Ho-oh said nervously.

"That might just be the case," Mewtwo said, knocking his wooden pen over with a twist of his free hand. Then he handed the Plate over to Deoxys. "Here."

"But I'm not even two years old," he replied.

"Go ahead and try."

"Okay." He looked at the Insect Plate. "Do I have a title of the thousand?"

The Plate glowed again, and Arceus translated again. "Deoxys the Guardian Angel: Defender of the innocent and young. A delicate balance of gentleness and power, the Guardian Angel can restrain the most powerful dangers. It may seem innocent itself, but it readily destroys threats to those under its guard."

"That sounds more reasonable," Lugia said. "But bringing in an Inquisitor?"

"Well why not?" Mewtwo said sharply to the group, getting them to fall silent. "You lot have made a ******* mess of things and you're clearly ineffective at this time. You've let humans become way too powerful. They can capture any one of you, sell you to the highest bidder, and still force you to do anything they order you to do. They can kill you in the blink of an eye. I know because I nearly got killed in a fraction of a second because of a human invention. And not just one death at a time. They have the capacity to level an entire region with a single bomb, killing everything around for miles and rendering the place unlivable for decades. Have any one of you done a thing to stop them from doing just that?"

There wasn't a single reply. A few of them looked to others to argue something, but nobody spoke up. In the meantime, Arceus the Mask stood by the group in the center, slowly moving her tail back and forth.

Mewtwo narrowed his eyes at them. "I feel a little foolish in that I'll be protecting a bunch of fricking idiots like you, but I won't ignore the dangers of mankind. They're starting to see us as little more than rare collectibles; I won't let that continue. I will punish those so-called 'faithless' and I won't apologize if any of you gets hurt by getting in my way." Then he teleported out of the dimensional space the chamber was in.

"I told you that we need to do these things properly," Mew said, shaking her head and moving to sit with the other small legends.

"Still, trying to call us to war against mankind?" Cresselia asked, making notes of the meeting.

"Um, I agree," a small voice said.

"What?" Jirachi asked. "Manaphy?"

The small ocean legend put her fins in front of her face. "Well it's more of a pollution problem. I've seen sea Pokemon die because they swallowed plastic bags or got caught in those plastic thingies around soda cans. And some of the chemical imbalances to the ocean are becoming irritating to my skin, and that of others. Then of course there's the issue with the Storage Box Pokemon. I don't care if they say it's stasis and the Pokemon don't notice a thing. It's not right or fair to freeze someone's life just to hold onto them. Even worse is when they leave the Pokemon there and do nothing."

"I agree," Kyogre and Groudon said, then glared at each other for speaking up.

Other environmentally minded legends began speaking up too. There was the sheer noise and heat coming off some human cities, and their more dangerous technologies. And how Pokeballs were becoming harder and harder to beat, lessening the option for Pokemon to keep out of a Trainer's grasp if it wished. Once someone mentioned about something called the Shadow curse, all the native Kanto and Johto legends agreed that some humans deserved severe punishment.

Cresselia was quiet during that part of the argument, but then stated, "Well the dreams of mankind have grown uglier in these times. I've wondered what ever happened to those sweet pastoral romances and other innocent dreams."

Darkrai snapped his fingers. "Well I could show you a sweet pastoral romance, but I won't promise anything innocent about it."

While she shot him a look that would have withered any lesser Pokemon, Celebi put two fingers in her mouth and whistled cheekily. Most of the others laughed at this as Cresselia tried to avoid Darkrai's wink. "If so many of us have grudges against mankind, we are free to call war on them as each individual decides. Now, there's still the matter of Deoxys to attend to."

He turned from where he'd been watching the discussion quietly. "Huh?'

"You're immature and need to be taught in a proper manner. We need to decide who you should go with."

He curled his whip arm around. "Actually, I'm going back to Mewtwo now."

"Are you sure about that? Your mission is to protect the innocent."

"Yeah, so I'm going with him."

"He's not innocent," Jirachi said.

"I know that. But he'll go into his role as the Inquisitor strongly. If you let him go alone, he's going to cause a lot more damage than necessary. I won't be going in to protect him. I'll be protecting the innocent from him. I can do that because he'll listen to me."

"He's right about that," Mew said.

"That does sound like a good idea, but," Cresselia started.

"Okay, see you later then!" Deoxys left the chamber.

"Great, and who's going to train him so that he has an edge over Mewtwo?" Cresselia finished sarcastically.

"I'll take care of that," Mew said. "Meeting adjourned!"

"Wait..."

"Oh good," Heatran said. "I was getting hungry." He and several others left the room.

"Hey, if we're going to war," Celebi realized, "that means I can't hang around." She abruptly snapped out of that time's existence.

"Oh shoot, I'd better go check on her," Dialga said, and left as well.

Sighing, Cresselia started finishing up the meeting notes. "I hope this is all for the best."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know someone who actually uses the 'but only because you're sexy' line. (edit note years later) And they're still happily married.


	14. Epilogues, Episodes, and Epic Puns

Deoxys: Hi there! This is the special behind the scenes episode of our show. We hope that you've enjoyed the story and that you now understand why Pokemon must take over the world. So you must realize that you're better off submitting to us and being obedient followers.

Mewtwo: (muffled) You could be a little more subtle.

Deoxys: Oh, sorry.

Mewtwo: (muffled) Just go with it. (Mumbles something the camera can't pick up)

Deoxys: Anyhow, we're here in Ysavvryl's yard, as she was nice enough to host this episode herself. It's got an old farmhouse with a red roof and lots of trees.

Mewtwo: (muffled) And poison sumac. (Grumbles again)

Deoxys: That too. Mewtwo's working on a machine that'll let us transport various guest stars here in a bit. For now, here's the first epilogue scene, of stuff that happened after the Legendary War was declared.

* * *

 

While it took Deoxys several Teleport jumps to get back home, he made it back to the old stone castle on his own. It had been around twenty days since they had left for Hearthome, but it felt it had been much longer that they'd been away. And a lot had happened since then too; he felt like a much different Pokemon. But he was glad to be back home all the same.

He drifted through the dark but cool halls for a while before coming to Mewtwo's lab. The door was open. As usual, he was working hard at something inside. After making sure nothing dangerous was set up, Deoxys went inside. "Hello? What're you doing?"

Mewtwo was at a table with nine Pokeballs scattered about. A laptop computer was sitting on the table, attached to various scanning devices. While it was busy analyzing data, Mewtwo was examining one of the balls himself. But he looked over as Deoxys came into the room. "Hello. I'm doing some preliminary research on an idea. Why are you here?"

Coming up to rest his arms on the table, he answered, "I wanted to come back."

He put the Pokeball he had down, causing the stars on the charm bracelet to jangle quietly. "But your title conflicts with what I'm planning on doing. You could have gone with any one of them; I'm sure they would have been happy to take you in."

"I know, but you're my father. I wanted to come back."

After a moment, he smiled. "If that's what you want... I do appreciate it."

"So what are you doing?"

Mewtwo picked up another one of the Pokeballs. "There's several things that I've connected into a possible way to cause the humans a lot of trouble. Pokeballs exert a sub-psychic influence on a Pokemon's mind, similar to that of a TM Case Player. This influence enforces obedience. The strength of that enforcement depends on two things: that the OT number matches the Trainer's ID number, and on the presence of Gym badges. If the Pokeball detects either of these, it compels the Pokemon connected to it to obey."

"How does it detect those things?"

"I'm working on figuring that out. Also, there are ways to subvert this influence. If you are a high level and the OT and ID numbers don't match, the influence is weak. Mew, and perhaps myself, seems to be immune or highly resistant to the obedience enforcement. And a Pokemon caught in depression or a Shadow-cursed berserk state is also highly resistant to the enforcement. Since the enforcement is dependent on the Pokeball's sensors and now the Pokemon's emotions, there may be a way to cancel it out. Perhaps even entirely."

Deoxys smiled at that thought. "That'll be a big help to lots of Pokemon."

"Yes. I had in mind the ones stuck in PC Storage. I need to do some research there as well, but it seems that they are frozen as computer data until their Trainer or some authority removes them. Some time ago, I remember hearing about a Bellsprout who was put into storage for ten years and was only pulled out upon its Trainer's death. There may be even more extreme cases."

"But if you could hack into the system, couldn't we free them?"

"We could, but they would still be linked to a Pokeball. We could release them, but that has to be done one at a time, which could take forever. And if we do release them, they might get caught again. No, I had something different in mind. If I could figure out a way to break the obedience influence and empower the Pokemon stuck in PC Storage, they would be a great help in our cause to ruin the human race."

"That would be amazing. Can I help?"

"Of course. Hmm." He glanced aside, then called a white box to him. "Here, this has some instructional CDs on computer skills. Teach yourself some and you can do some research on the Storage program."

"Okay!" He went to an unused computer and started his study.

* * *

 

Deoxys: That took a really long time to finish, but it was worth it. Mewtwo, have you got the machine running yet?

Mewtwo: I think so. I'm going to test it out. Here we go. (Presses buttons)

(After a massive flash of light, Giratina appears with a roar.)

Giratina: Argh, my eyes! What happened to my nice dark Distortion World? What's with all the green?

(Giratina disappears in another flash of light.)

Mewtwo: It works.

Deoxys: Um, we promised Ysavvryl that we wouldn't mess up the roses.

Mewtwo: Don't worry. I dropped him on the poison sumac.

Deoxys: ... He's going to be so mad at us.

Mewtwo: He's a Ghost Dragon. I think he resists Poison.

Deoxys: Is sumac considered Poison or Grass?

Mewtwo: Probably both. Now who's first on the guest list?

Deoxys: (checks notes) Let's see... Kyogre and Groudon.

Mewtwo: This'll be interesting. (Calls on Kyogre and Groudon)

Groudon: What the hell's going on? Can't a guy take a decent early-century nap... whoa, nice farmland.

(Weather turns very sunny, but nobody notices because it's August in the Midwest.)

Deoxys: Hi Groudon! We're interviewing people for our show.

Groudon: Is that so? Well I'll be happy to...

Kyogre: What in hell were you thinking, calling me here into this puddle?

(Weather turns very rainy, but nobody notices because it's August in the Midwest.)

Groudon: That's a duck pond, dimwit.

(Weather stays sunny.)

Deoxys: Um actually, geese and catfish live there. The ducks live over that way.

Kyogre: It's a stinking mud-filled puddle compared to the ocean!

(Weather stays rainy.)

Groudon: That's what makes this place so great!

Kyogre: You simple-minded fool! Nobody can live without water, so the ocean is supreme!

Groudon: As I've said a million times before, the planet is made up of rocks! So land is supreme!

Kyogre: I'd like to see you live without water!

Groudon: I'd love to if it got rid of the moronic Pokemon like you.

Kyogre: Oh Ground Pokemon are much greater morons that Water.

(Weather is hot and humid... in other words, perfectly normal.)

Mewtwo: Hey jerks, this is our show! (Presses a few buttons and sends them away.)

Deoxys: Um, we never got to ask the question from the reader.

Mewtwo: What was the question?

Deoxys: Um, (reads) asking what they thought of each other.

Mewtwo: It answered the question anyhow. Is there a single one we can bring out next?

Deoxys: Sure, how about... Celebi?

Celebi: Here I am!

Mewtwo: Your entrance is a little early.

Celebi: Is it? You just asked for me.

Mewtwo: Whatever. This is our extra episode and one of the fans has a question for you.

Celebi: Really? Well I might not be able to answer. I have to keep the timeline mostly intact.

Deoxys: I think it'll be okay. It says, 'Will you admit you smoke weed'?

Celebi: I was fighting a weed infestation! I already told everybody that. It was highly invasive in spreading habits and it had a devastating effect among the populace both Pokemon and human. I had to stop it before it acquired its fast spreading gene.

Mewtwo: But you were intoxicated the day of my trial.

Celebi: It was a nasty thing to fight and a hard won battle. Plus I don't normally look to destroy a plant's progress.

Mewtwo: It might have helped if you hadn't used Hidden Power Fire on it.

Celebi: Oh shut up! (Vanishes)

Deoxys: Maybe you shouldn't have said that.

Mewtwo: It's probably the truth. She's got a pretty strong HP score.

Deoxys: No, I mean there's a vine growing in your machine now.

Mewtwo: Ah shoot. Give me a bit; I'll get it cleared.

Deoxys: I hope that's not her invasive weed... anyhow, we'll just play another epilogue now.

* * *

 

Mew was back doing studio work. No matter what happened, she loved singing. So full of life... in some ways, she couldn't believe that she had a hand in inciting a war between humans and Pokemon. But Mewtwo was right about some things. Humans had grown powerful and careless. It was time to remind them why their ancestors depended on and feared Pokemon.

Using her image of Glitter Glameow again, she pulled the headphones off her ears. "What do you think of that?"

"That's a beautiful pop ballad you've written," her manager replied. "I'm a little surprised that it sounds like you're speaking of your love for two guys, though. After the fuss you put up over some past songs."

"It's because I do love those guys," she said, smiling warmly. "They're my son and grandson."

"Wh-what? Glitter, you're just nineteen... that's right, isn't it?"

Giggling, she tweaked the flow of aura so he and others listening forgot about the 'my son and grandson' bit. "That's right, I'm just nineteen. It's no problem."

"Right. Are you going to let your image mature finally?"

"Ma-aybe," she teased.

And ma-aybe her new album would have some subliminal signals on it, calling any Pokemon listener to strive for independence and respect. Just maybe.

* * *

 

Deoxys: Yeah, that's where the title of our show comes from, Glitter Glameow's song about us. Well Mew's song, but you know. I heard Ysavvryl thought about adding bits of it, but decided against it.

Mewtwo: Good thing too, since she's only a mediocre poet.

Deoxys: Aw come on. She put up with you for the entire season, so you ought to treat her kinda nice.

Mewtwo: She's still human. Anyhow, I've got the vine problem fixed. Who's our next guest?

Deoxys: Hmm... Latias... wait, who's that?

Mewtwo: Latias, female twin to Latios. Psychic-Flying, a pink roaming legend of the third generation. That's who she is.

Deoxys: When did she show up?

Mewtwo: She was at the trial, but didn't have a speaking line on the show. Unfortunately, that means I can't call her with this machine. What was the question?

Deoxys: It was... 'Why is that Mist Ball is a useless attack?'.

Mewtwo: Because it is. Who's the next actual guest?

Deoxys: (looks at list) There's one for 'random TG grunts'

Mewtwo: Sure, why not? We can always use them as cannonballs if they get uppity.

Deoxys: Don't you mean cannon fodder?

Mewtwo: If I say cannonballs, I mean cannonballs. (Presses buttons and brings in two blue haired Galactic grunts). Not that you really had to say what they looked like.

Grunt (M): What gives? Don't tell me they've got the teleport pads malfunctioning again.

Mewtwo: Then I won't tell you that. Now, you're going to answer a question and you're going to answer it well. Otherwise, I have free reign to drop you at any point in the world I choose.

Grunt (F): Why're we being ordered around by a Pokemon? We follow a living god! If you don't respect him, he'll smite you where you stand.

Mewtwo: Giovanni can do a lot of crazy ****, but he can't do that.

Grunt (F): I'm talking about Cyrus, not that washed up old Rocket.

Mewtwo: (sarcastically) Yeah, I'm real frightened of Cyrus. Deoxys, give them the question.

Deoxys: Right. It's 'Why are you so stupid and expendable?'.

Grunt (M): You dragged us all the way out here to ask that?

Grunt (F): We are not stupid and expendable! We have given our lives and fortunes over to the holiest man on Earth, Cyrus, and we will do anything to make his visions of an ideal life and society real. We are the only perfect society around, which makes us above petty laws and close-minded morals. And when our glorious leader is finally recognized for what he is, we will become his immortal and glorious servants.

Mewtwo: Right, thank you for answering the question.

Grunt (F): I was not answering the question! I was showing how faulty the reasoning behind it was.

Grunt (M): You could have just said it was a stupid question. And a stupid reason for bringing us here.

Mewtwo: And just what were you doing before this? Goofing off on your job of guarding a particular cavern when you have no clue why it needs to be guarded, but suspect some kind of unprintable encounter is going on back there?

Grunt (M): ... no comment.

Mewtwo: And for my own curiosity, why do you call Cyrus the holiest man on Earth? He's fricking insane.

Grunt (M): You just can't understand the true depth and complexity of his mind. Neither can I, mind you, but I still believe in him.

Grunt (F): We follow him because he's sexy.

Grunt (M): What?

Grunt (F): Aw come on, admit it. You joined Galactic because you were drawn in by his irresistible aura. It's the blue hair, I tell you, although this dud doesn't pull it off half as well as our glorious leader.

Grunt (M): Uummm, errrr... no comment.

Mewtwo: Fine, I've had enough of you two. Goodbye. (Presses some buttons)

Deoxys: Where did you send them?

Mewtwo: Into Cyrus' personal quarters. Who's the next guest?

Deoxys: Well... hey, there's a question for you!

Mewtwo: Good. Ask away.

Deoxys: It's... oh, should I ask this?

Mewtwo: Get on with it.

Deoxys: If you insist... 'How have you gotten thinner? You don't do any physical work...'.

Mewtwo: Seriously? That's the only question for me?

Deoxys: Looks like it.

Mewtwo: It's because I do a lot of mental work. If you don't think that is tough, you've never picked up a nuclear sub with only your thoughts and tossed it seventy-five yards. It's very draining being a Psychic Pokemon. Just look at all the rest; they're small or thin.

Deoxys: What about Hypno? They're a tad bulky.

Mewtwo: Only a tad and they focus on hypnosis skills. That's not as much work as doing a full-blown scan of somebody's mind. I bet if you taught a Snorlax Telekinesis and managed to get it to do so regularly, it would lose weight at an astounding speed. Then again, the thought of what a Snorlax would look like after losing all its fat... ugh.

Deoxys: And Metagross weighs over a ton.

Mewtwo: They're part Steel.

Deoxys: Um, I'd rather not change the subject, but I think Celebi just rusted out your machine.

Mewtwo: Drat. Run another one of the epilogues, although this shouldn't take long to fix.

* * *

 

Giovanni walked along the halls of the Sinnoh Elite Four Hall. Lucien followed a step behind him, obviously unnerved by his presence. However, the psychic master had no chance of knowing that he was the leader of the former Team Rocket. Opal was very useful once he'd learned how to use the gem. That and other technologies kept his most dangerous enemies and allies from divining his plans.

Lucien didn't trust him completely because of that, though. "Leo, I appreciate your help, but if you could be a bit clearer on why you're willing to help the Sinnoh League. You aren't from this region."

The fact that he was wearing a reddish wig and had dyed any of his own hair to match helped disguise his true identity. "I understand that it's not your fault that your League is having some trouble continuing to run. It takes a lot of money to keep Gyms afloat. And I understand that giving young people goals helps them develop into better adults. Thus, it is no trouble."

"There's still some people arguing the minimum age of sixteen is unfair and unreasonable, though."

"Changes like that will be fought. They will come to see the sense of it."

Lucien thought he was Leo. The leader of the joint Kanto-Johto League thought he was Gemini. And others thought he was someone else entirely. However, he was stealing control of them all slowly. With a great many underworld organizations under his command, it was easy enough to push these legitimate groups into needing his assistance.

Control over the world wasn't won by brute force. It was won by careful manipulation and legal traps. However, he still needed a powerful force to keep any he did control in line. He lost the Pokemon he had wanted. But he would have them again, someday.

* * *

 

Deoxys: (quietly) Um guys, don't tell Mewtwo that Giovanni got his own epilogue. He won't like that.

Mewtwo: (muffled) What?

Deoxys: Nothing. Well, nothing but the fact that we're back on.

Mewtwo: I've got it running again, but we should be careful of taking much longer. Who else have we got?

Deoxys: There's several questions for the three beasts.

Mewtwo: I don't know if I want to be bringing them all here. They still don't like me.

Deoxys: Well one is just for Entei.

Mewtwo: It's always the Fire types that are popular... except for Slugma. Fine, let's bring Entei in. (Presses buttons)

Entei: Celebi says that your breath is worse than a Gyarados' after it's eaten a Carvahna.

Mewtwo: Well isn't that nice? I wasn't the one who asked the question in the first place.

Deoxys: Wouldn't those tough scales cause indigestion?

Mewtwo: I wouldn't know. You've got some questions to answer, Entei.

Entei: As long as they're not from you.

Deoxys: They're from the readers. Okay, here's the first one: 'How did you grow your beard?'.

Entei: You like it? I'm very proud of it, you know, when I manage to keep it intact.

Deoxys: Wouldn't you burn it when using any of your Fire skills?

Entei: I'm very careful about it. Luckily, I don't drool embers like some other Fire types. I can keep it detangled with my claws if I take my time. But it's worth it. I could win those Contests easily with this handsome mane. That wouldn't give a chance to the mortal Pokemon, though, so I stay out of it.

Mewtwo: (mutters) Not that that is much to brag about.

Deoxys: That's nice. Okay, then... somebody has two questions. 'Are you gerbils, dogs, or cats? And what Pokemon were you before you were killed in a fire and resurrected by Ho-oh?'

Entei: We're Pokemon, duh.

Mewtwo: Yes, but are you canine, feline, or rodent? Most people would call me a feline hominoid, although I find that to be a grave insult.

Entei: Just Pokemon. Some people have called us beasts. I think that's what Ysavvryl uses. So, beasts.

Deoxys: And what about before the fire?

Entei: I don't know. I don't remember and Ho-oh was too upset to identify the remains.

Mewtwo: (smirking) I'd bet you were Rattatas.

Entei: (furious) What was that?

Mewtwo: It's not important if you don't remember it. There was another question for them, wasn't there?

Deoxys: Um, yes. It was addressed to a whole bunch of people, but could you answer it for everybody?

Entei: I think so. I hope I don't offend anyone. Like somebody around here (glares at Mewtwo).

Deoxys: Me either. Okay, it's, 'What was it like to be Shadow Pokemon'?

Entei: ...

Deoxys: What?

Entei: We don't discuss it with strangers. It is a horrid curse and if I ever run into one of those Cipher people again, I'll disembowel them alive.

Deoxys: Ew.

Mewtwo: And here you were trying to stop me from causing war. Hypocrite.

Entei: (growls) Watch yourself. I might not be able to kill you, but I can... (interrupted as Mewtwo sends him away)

Mewtwo: Right then. Who do we have left?

Deoxys: Let me see. There's one for Cresselia, two for Darkrai, and three for Arceus.

Mewtwo: Well let's hurry along. We're already at ten pages and there's one more epilogue left.

Deoxys: But this has been mostly script format, so... (sees Mewtwo's impatience) okay.

Mewtwo; I have a feeling... (presses buttons)

Cresselia: (grumpy) Who's calling me out to the middle of the day... oh, it's you two. What're you up to now?

Mewtwo: The readers of our show have a question for you. Go on.

Deoxys: Here's what a fan wants to know... um, it's got a text thingy. How do I pronounce that?

Mewtwo: Very carefully.

Deoxys: I'll give it a try... 'Won't you admit you <3 Darkrai already?'

Cresselia: What was that question about?

Mewtwo: You have a crush on Darkrai; admit it.

Cresselia: What? No, I don't! I cause sweet dreams and he's the king of nightmares... ugh. I can't stand him.

Darkrai: But you are the sweetest dream of them all, my little crescent wedgie.

Cresselia: Gah! (Teleports away)

Mewtwo: 'Crescent wedgie?' Really?

Darkrai: Don't make fun of the loving nicknames a man gives to his sweetie dreamheart. She'll acknowledge me one of these days.

Mewtwo: Dream on. Anyhow, if you don't mind hanging around a bit longer, the readers have some questions for you.

Darkrai: Well I greatly dislike this Midwestern sun, but I'll hang around for a bit, as you say.

Deoxys: O-okay. The first question is... 'Why is it that I picture you with a Southern accent and cowboy hat?'

Darkrai: What's that supposed to mean?

Mewtwo: Exactly what it says.

Darkrai: Well, hmm... the tan hats don't really fit my image. But those black ones are pretty sweet. I wouldn't mind wearing one of those. Oo, and I love Southern food. Seafood gumbo, cornbread, chitlins...

Deoxys: What's chitlins?

Mewtwo: Fried pig intestines.

Deoxys: That's gross.

Mewtwo: Not as gross as haggis. (Notices Deoxys is about to ask about that) Sheep stomach stuffed with oats and other things, then boiled for an absurdly long time.

Deoxys: People eat stuff like that?

Darkrai: And sweet tea... and Texas chili. The hotter the chilies, the better. Maybe I picked something up at all those late night cookouts.

Mewtwo: You hang out at late night cookouts?

Darkrai: Of course. There's great food and the humans are usually drinking beer, so it's entertaining to see what their drunken sleeping minds come up with. That's where my best material comes from.

Mewtwo: And possibly the origin of your nicknaming skills. What was the other question from the readers?

Deoxys: They really eat stuff like that? Oh, sorry, the reader questions... it's, 'Why do you own so much?'

Darkrai: That question makes no sense.

Mewtwo: That's one of the simpler ones; how does it not make sense?

Darkrai: Well I don't care how many things I own. I haven't been able to claim Cresselia's heart and without that, it all means nothing. I'm just a lonely nightmare chasing some wild dream and I'm getting nowhere. People say I'm terrible, but I know more than anyone else how much love hurts. I don't care about anything else.

Mewtwo: ... I think that's about how good you are in battle, especially competitive. You could snap your fingers at any one of us Psychic legends and knock us down like cardboard cutouts. At the same time, very few legends have the Fighting capacity to counter you properly. Which is why you should be able to simply knock her out cold in one shot and take her captive.

Darkrai: I'm not doing that to my darling Cresselia! Why would I want to cause her pain? That is one other thing that keeps me away from humans, as those infernal Pokeballs would make me hurt my dreamheart. I'm not desperate enough to do that to her. Although I can't even get her to come with me on a blind date... she always guesses that it's me... (sobs)

Deoxys: Aw... hang on a moment.

* * *

 

It was a quiet day at the Cerulean Pokecenter. Nurse Joy wasn't expecting any rush for a few hours. While there might always be a stray traveler coming in for a healing, the center wouldn't be busy by a long shot. It was Tuesday, after all.

At least, it shouldn't have been busy.

Over in the corner, there was a row of computers, available for use by any Trainer who needed them. Near them was a machine that allowed Pokemon to be stored via the virtual Storage system. The only thing it did when not in use was hum. It did not beep repeatedly, as it began to do out of the blue.

It was probably broken, she thought. And it would be expensive to fix. Sighing, she left her position behind the counter to check on it. Before she made it out, a red light came from the device, releasing a large bipedal tree with faces on its five fruits. It shook its broad green leaves and looked at her.

Nurse Joy stopped, uncertain of what to do. Normally she wouldn't be afraid of an Exeggcutor, but normally she knew when to expect it. Something was wrong today.

The Exeggcutor walked off, but as soon as it did, the machine spit out three more Pokemon, a Hariyama, a Ponyta, and a Seedot. Like the one before them, the Pokemon looked at her, then walked out the front door. And it happened again, three more escaping the PC Storage system. From the lights of the machine gone bright scarlet, this was going to continue for some time.

Alarmed and confused, the nurse pressed the alarm trigger hidden under the counter. It was only supposed to be used in case of violence. However, she wanted help and she wanted it now.

On a rooftop facing the Pokecenter, Mewtwo and Deoxys watched the escaping Pokemon. " _So there they go,"_ the elder said. " _Free to live their own lives and fight against the human race."_

" _What if they don't fight?"_ Deoxys asked.

He shrugged. _"I know some won't, but enough should to leave an impression. And these Pokemon can't be recaptured by any means."_

"I've got you now!" a female voice called out from the top of the roof. A young woman with red hair stood up there. "You'll get it for... huh?"

Mewtwo waved at her, as did Deoxys a moment later. "Greetings, Leader Misty," Mewtwo said with mock politeness. "Did you notice the stray Pokemon in the streets? You can't touch them."

"It's you again?" Misty asked. "You're threatening my Gym?"

"I wasn't expecting you to hold onto that position for so long," he taunted. "After all, you were always traveling away from this place."

"What are you up to?"

"We've declared war on mankind. I'll demonstrate how seriously I'm taking it this time." He snapped his fingers. The Cerulean Gym blew up.

Misty's jaw dropped as a column of black smoke obliterated any signs of how badly the building was demolished. The shockwave jarred her bones and the act jarred her soul. "How could you?" she asked, unable to think clearly.

"Easily. Good luck cleaning the mess up." He and Deoxys teleported away.

The Legendary War was finally fought in the open.

* * *

 

Deoxys: Don't worry, I made sure that everybody got out of the building before the explosion.

Mewtwo: That was the only way he'd agree to it. So, Darkrai left to find some party to distract himself with. And we've got our last guest with us, Arceus.

Arceus: Right.

Mewtwo: So, you wound up with the most questions. Probably because you don't grant interviews that often.

Deoxys: Then we're lucky. Okay, here's the first: 'Why are you so sleepy?'

Arceus: I've got the Meadow Plate. In a sunny spot. It's so relaxing.

Mewtwo: Yes, but how did you sleep quietly when you were right in front of Darkrai at the trial? Most people can't sleep peacefully within a mile of Darkrai's presence.

Arceus: I'm a thespian.

Deoxys: A what?

Arceus: An actor. I am a mask, playing my part in the moment when it is needed.

Deoxys: So, when are yourself?

Arceus: I'm a mask. I'm myself when being used.

Mewtwo: You're quite welcome to that job. I wouldn't accept it for anything.

Arcues: Thank you.

Deoxys: All right, if you like it. Next question: 'What is your opinion on the ? Plate?'.

Arceus: Which one is that?

Mewtwo: The one of the ? type.

Arceus: It is unknown to me.

Deoxys: You know, you're not nearly as interesting as the rest.

Arceus: I am a mask.

Deoxys: Um, you already said that... anyhow, last question. 'Who would win in a fight: Arceus or Baal?' Uh, who's Baal?

Mewtwo: An ancient god of Mesopotamia that was worshiped by several cultures. In the Judea-Christian culture, Baal is a devil who eats babies.

Deoxys: Okay, that's even more gross than haggis or chitlins.

Mewtwo: Also, in the video game series Disgaea, Baal is an uber-boss who sometimes takes form of a Prinny.

Deoxys: And what...?

Mewtwo: A Prinny is a blue penguin that is known for its humor and its ability to explode upon being thrown.

Deoxys: So, a Piplup hacked to know Explosion?

Mewtwo: With the same stats as a legendary, close enough.

Deoxys: That's pretty scary. What do you think, Arceus?

Arceus: Spooky Plate. I win.

Mewtwo: Baal knows more than Explosion. And he's not a Pokemon, so he doesn't have a specific type. But then again, since he doesn't have a specific type, he wouldn't have elemental boosts. You also have to consider how items and equipment work differently in an SRPG. It's like using a Monopoly piece in chess. That's a difficult battle to call without hosting it.

Deoxys: Well since this show was originally hosted on a Pokemon website, I say Arceus wins simply by being the central fandom.

Mewtwo: ... good point.

Deoxys: So then, that's it... I guess.

Mewtwo: I thought there was another question.

Deoxys: I'm pretty sure there were only the questions for Arceus left after we had to deal with Darkrai.

Arceus: Check again.

Deoxys: (looks at notes) Oh hey, I've got a question! I didn't notice it earlier. Let's see... 'Deoxys, are there any stories like this coming out in the future, which are clearly not propaganda efforts to brainwash the masses into submission and clearly are efforts to inform an unaware public of the true version of the historical Pokemon canon?'. Uuhhhhh...

Mewtwo: That's quite a difficult question. They must respect you a lot in order to ask it of you and not anybody else.

Deoxys: (blushes) Well, I'll give it a try. Um... if you mean stories like this by Ysavvryl, I hear she has something called 'The Bride of Darkrai'. It's supposed to be a one-shot, or something like that, that's sort of connected to this story. I didn't quite understand what she meant by that, but it's about Darkrai. Wait, I didn't know that he was married. Who's he married to?

Arceus: You don't want to know.

Deoxys: But that makes me want to know even more. I guess I'll wait until I read that story. She was also talking about doing something with the Legendary War, but that it would be incredibly complex and not quite as crack-y, so she wasn't sure if she would start it.

Mewtwo: Don't worry. Talking to authors is confusing.

Deoxys: I know. Anyhow, that's the last question. I guess this is the end of the episode and the show. So, um, I had lots of fun and stuff, and I hope you all loved it! Thanks to the Serebii forum readers Treeconator11, mattman324, and Son_of_Shadows for today's questions. Anything you want to say, Mewtwo?

Mewtwo: Yes. There are no subliminal messages in this post.

Deoxys: What? But what about...?

Mewtwo: Just go with it.

THE END

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's that. You can tell how old this is because I hadn't posted The Bride of Darkrai yet, ha ha!  
> A story of the war here would be more complex than I'd like to tackle, especially with all the things that got thrown in here. Though I might do something more with Shadow Pokémon eventually; I keep coming back to them.


End file.
